Let's just go back to the way it was
by st.puckleberryfinn
Summary: Puck and Rachel went from being best friends to lovers and from lovers to strangers in only one week. What happens when they meet again, two years later, after the night that changed everything? Puckleberry future fic with Quick & Rachel/OC
1. Come With Me

**A/N: I had this idea in my head for a while now, so I thought: why not write a story and share it with you guys? So yeah, here it is - at least the first part!**

**Things you should know to understand everything: this is kinda AU, so everything since the second half of Season 3 never happened. Finn isn't dead because that makes me sad and I don't wanna be sad. He and Rachel just broke up in the middle of Senior Year because they realized they wanted different things and now he's having a great life somewhere else. What did happen: the Klaine engagement and the Quick reunion. They all graduated in 2012, now we have August 2016. And I think that's enough for now, so... enjoy!**

* * *

When Quinn used the words Rachel, her boyfriend and double date in the same sentence, he immediately started to think of an excuse to back out of it. Maybe something like "I'm too tired", "I want to spent some time with you alone" or "I already made plans with Chris". But he knew that this wasn't going to work. His girlfriend learned to read him pretty well over the last 3 years and always knew when he was lying. And anyway, it was just one evening; he could do that. He could sit there, smile, make small-talk and just forget about the last time he saw the tiny brunette at Kurt and Blaine's wedding 2 years ago. She probably was just in Lima for a few days, to see her dads for the summer. And after that she'd head back to New York and Broadway and go on living the live she always wanted. And he'd do the exact same thing without even thinking of her any longer.

The thing was, he hadn't been really successful with this not-thinking-of-her in the last 1425 days. Hell, even before that there rarely passed a week where he didn't hear a song on the radio and wished she would sing it, or where he laid in his bed in his child's room and wondered if she already was asleep. But he'd gotten better at it. Whenever her name crossed his mind now, he'd push it as far away as possible. And whenever someone mentioned her name in a conversation, which happened maybe four times a year, he'd make himself believe he didn't care the tiniest bit. But there was still a part of him that didn't want to let go of her completely, that still had this stupid hope that one day they would finally get their chance. And he hated that part. So maybe that double date wasn't as bad as he though. Maybe he just needed to see her, know that she was happy without him, that she didn't need him in her live. Maybe he just needed the closure he didn't get all those years ago.

* * *

When Rachel first saw Quinn in the supermarket, she thought that the blonde didn't change at all in the past years. She still was that gorgeous, hazel eyed girl who walked around town with her head held high like she owned it. But when she saw Rachel, ran to her and pulled her into a tight hug, her smile wasn't anything like that icy head cheerleader and prom queen smile Rachel used to see all too often. It was much softer and warmer and Rachel didn't think it was a façade for a second. Quinn Fabray was seriously happy to see her again and she didn't try to hide it. So naturally, when her old high school frenemy asked her if she wanted to have dinner tonight to catch up on everything that's been going on in the last time, Rachel agreed without a second thought. She probably should have thought because the next thing Quinn said totally threw her off the track.

"I'm sure Puck will be happy to see you, too!"

Her heart sank to her feet. Puck. Noah. She hadn't heard that name in ages. But that didn't mean she hadn't though about him, she just didn't stay in contact with anyone who would bring up his name in a conversation. Now Rachel wasn't so sure if she wanted to have dinner with Quinn, if that meant she got to see him. After everything that happened that last time. But Quinn already pressed a paper with her address in her hand.

"Oh and of course you can bring someone with you, if there is someone? Or are you buying that steak for yourself because you're not vegan anymore?" Quinn said and pointed into Rachel's shopping cart.

"Oh um... no, that's for my boyfriend, actually. I still don't eat meat, but I'm more of a vegetarian now."

"Oh thank god! I don't think I have any vegan recipes." The blonde laughed. "But I'll make something vegetarian then. So, how about you and your boyfriend just come over at 7?" Quinn seemed to be pretty excited about all of this. Cooking for her old high school classmate and her boyfriend. Rachel wasn't so sure, but she found herself nodding before she could do something else. With one last hug Quinn was gone and left Rachel standing alone in the aisle with the cleaning supplies with the desperate urge to punch herself in the face. Why the hell had she agreed to this? She should have known that Quinn and Puck were still together. Hell, the last time she talked to him he made it pretty clear that he would never break up with Quinn, that they belonged together and just had to be together. And Noah Puckerman didn't change his mind all that often.

Now it was too late to back out. Yeah, she could still say she didn't feel very well or her dads already made plans for tonight, but it wouldn't sound that realistic and she didn't want to be rude. And maybe it wouldn't be that bad. Maybe it would be nice to catch up with them and talk about everything that happened the past years. And really, what bad could happen? Quinn would be there the whole time and she'd take Cedric with her. As long as she and Noah weren't alone, everything would be fine. At least she hoped it would.

* * *

"Hey there, Twinkle! Got everything you needed?" Cedric said as soon as she closed the door to her childhood house. They came here yesterday and were staying with her dads for two weeks. At first she'd thought it would be really awkward, sleeping in her old high school bedroom together with her 26-year-old boyfriend and her parents next door. But it wasn't that bad, it actually had been their idea.

"It's useless to stay in a hotel when you're going to be here most of the time anyway!" Hiram had said when she suggested to stay in a hotel with her four years older boyfriend. "And we want to see you as much as possible!" Leroy had added. So yeah, they stayed at her dads.

"Yes, more or less. They didn't have your favorite herb butter, but I don't think you'll taste a big difference anyway." She laughed. Her boyfriend had this weird habit to always buy the most expensive groceries, especially with things like milk and butter. He told her once it was because when he was about 10, his mother bought a different and cheaper kind of milk and when he wanted to make himself a hot cocoa, it tasted so sour that he spit it all on the floor.

"I really hope so." He gave her a soft peck on the lips and took the shopping bags from her to carry them into the kitchen.

"And I met an old... friend, you could say. She invited us to dinner tonight!" Rachel said as they put away the groceries and tried to make it sound less significant than it really was.

"Oh, okay. Anyone you've already told me about?" He asked. They didn't talk all that much about their high school lives, but they covered the bases. He knew about Jesse and Finn and Glee club, he told her about his crazy ex girlfriend Amy and his short-lived basketball career in high school.

"Quinn Fabray. She's Beth's mom!" Cedric knew Beth. He had met her the first time Rachel played babysitter for her because Shelby had a job interview at a private school in New York. And when Shelby ended up getting the job and even moved into Rachel's district, she found herself spending more and more time with the daughter of her ex boyfriend and her high school rival. She told Cedric what happened between her and her mom in high school and that she ended up adopting the child of her friends, but she didn't say a lot about Quinn, or more importantly, Puck. She felt like everything that happened between her and Noah was too private and it should stay between them. Funny, considering that she told him everything about her naïve engagement with Finn without hesitation.

"Really? I thought she didn't like you and visa versa?"

"Well, it's complicated. We had our difficulties, but that was years ago. She was actually pretty nice today, so I thought why not. I mean, if you don't want to go we don't have to, of course!" For a second she hoped he would say he didn't so she could avoid the awkwardness that was about to come when she saw Noah again. But then again, a part of her really wanted to see him, see how he was doing, hear his voice...

"Oh no, it will be nice meeting some of your old friends. Maybe they'll tell me some nasty stories of you from High School!" He said with a smirk and closed the fridge. "Anyway, Hiram called and said that he and Leroy would come a little bit later tonight because of some business dinner, so we don't have plans anyway!" Cedric pulled her to him and set his hands on her waist. "Even if I could think of other ways to spent an evening alone with you." He grinned and bend down to kiss her. Rachel smiled into the kiss, letting his tongue slip past her lips for a few seconds before pulling away.

"Wait, I have to take a shower! Quinn said we should come over at 7, that's in less than two hours!" When there was one thing Rachel couldn't handle it was time pressure. She just got super nervous and squeamish, so she tried to avoid it whenever it was possible.

Cedric just grinned. "Well then, my dear... let's head to the shower, shall we!?"

* * *

"What are you cooking?" Puck asked when he came into the kitchen after taking a shower. Even though he'd already showered in the morning - like every day - he felt the need to be fresh and... yes, he was taking this whole Rachel-coming-to-dinner thing way to serious! But he really couldn't help it. Rachel was coming to his house tonight to have dinner with him. And Quinn. And her boyfriend. This wasn't how he always imagined meeting her again. Not that he ever thought about possible ways they could meet each other again, of course. He had his life in Lima and she had hers in New York. That's the way it was supposed to be. And that wouldn't change just because they had dinner.

"Vegetable Lasagna." Quinn answered as she shoved the food in the oven.

"You mean vegetable lasagna as in lasagna without meat?"

"Yes, Puck." The blond laughed and switched on the stopwatch. "I've never tried this recipe before and I probably won't get another chance because you refuse to eat any meal without meat in it. But I promise you'll survive, just do it for Rachel." Puck swallowed. Quinn didn't even knew what that joke really meant. Do it for Rachel. Was there even anything he wouldn't do for her? Probably not. She had this mean ability to always get exactly what she wanted from him, he was completely powerless. Whether she wanted him to help her make her boyfriend jealous, cheat on him, get puppies from a shelter or cut of his legs off. She never asked for last one, but there was a time he would have at least considered it!

"Puck!" He snapped out of his thoughts when Quinn said his name. Noah just looked at her questioning. "I told you to set up the table!"

"Um yeah, sure." He already was loosing his mind over this. Rachel Fucking Berry and her sneaky ways to always get into his mind!

* * *

Rachel was nervous. And not that kind of good nervous she felt before going on stage to perform. No, this was bad. She was literally sweating! She managed to stay pretty calm while she got ready, told herself that it wasn't a big deal. That it could be nice. But now she was way past that point. She looked out of the window of her dads black Toyota, just glad she wasn't the one driving the vehicle.

"Everything alright, babe?" Cedric asked as he squeezed her thigh, a thing he did a lot. Whether they were sitting in the car, on the sofa or in a restaurant. And Rachel really liked that small but cute move. It mirrored his personality in some kind of way.

"Yeah, sure. I'm just a little... nervous."

"Afraid that I'll embarrass you?" He asked with an ironic undertone.

"Oh god, no. As if you ever could embarrass me. It's more likely the other way round!" Rachel laughed and took his hand that was laying in her lap in hers to play with it. "I just... I don't know. I haven't seen them in so long. What if we suddenly don't have anything to talk about anymore and this awkward silence comes up?"

"Oh, no problem. I'll just tell one of my self-invented, hilarious jokes and they will fly off their chairs laughing." Rachel could help but giggle. Cedric had loads of talents, but telling jokes definitely wasn't one of them. He was a lost cause.

"No offence, but I'd rather take the awkward silent then!" The brunette teased.

"Cocky, aren't we?" Cedric said, but took her hand to kiss it softly. "But seriously, you don't need to worry. If there is one person who can always come up with a new, crazy topic to talk about, it's you. Or you just break out into song! Either way, it's gonna be alright." Rachel smiled at her boyfriends words. He could always calm her down, whether it was with his words or just his presence itself. And he was right. There were so many things they could talk about and as long as no one mentioned Kurt and Blaine's wedding, she'd be alright. Everything would be alright. The more she told herself that, the more she actually believed it.

* * *

When the bell rang at 7:02 pm, Puck suddenly felt the urgent need to use the bathroom. He locked the white door behind him and went straight to the sink to splash some cold water on his face. In the corridor he could hear muffled voices and a door falling in its lock. She was here. They were here. Rachel and her boyfriend. _Goddamnit Puckerman, get your shit together._ He knew the longer he stayed in the small bathroom, the harder it would get to actually come out of it. He dried his face with a towel next to him and with one last look in the mirror he unlocked the door and stepped out. He could hear laughter coming from the kitchen. Rachel's laugh. His heart was already beating so fast he thought he could pass out every second. It was just now that he realized he not just hadn't seen her for 2 years, he hadn't heard her voice for that long, too.

"Puck?" Quinn called from the living room. He still stood next to the bathroom door, not having moved a meter.

"Coming." He shouted back and without his brain sending any instructions, his feet started to move towards the voices. And then he saw her. She was standing with the back to him next to the table, wearing a short, white summer dress. Her hair was hanging down her back in soft curls and her legs seemed even longer than the last time he saw her. He already was so fucked.

"Finally. It's not nice letting our guests wait, Puck!" Quinn said as she saw him standing in the door frame. But he didn't get a chance to answer because Rachel spun around and looked him straight into the eyes. It seemed like the time was standing still and he was pretty sure his heart just skipped a beat. She was gorgeous. No, seriously, she had smokey eyes and her pink lipstick matched the color of her shoes. (Why the hell did he even realize that?) And there was something in her eyes that let him think, just for a second, she maybe felt the same way.

"No worries, we don't have any other plans for today!" Cedric said and it was just now that Puck noticed the guy standing next to her with his hand on her back.

"So since my boyfriend seems to have lost all his manners... Cedric, this is Puck." The blonde said and threw him an angry look.

"Uh yeah, sorry. Hi, I'm Puck." He shook the other guys hand and tried not to ogle him too much. Thing was, he didn't really seem to be Rachel's type at all. Granted, he hadn't talked to Rachel for a long time and she probably changed over the last 2 years, but still. Cedric was about Puck's height and clearly knew what a gym was, but other than that? Not similar to any of her former boyfriends. Cedric had green eyes and dark blonde, curly hair. And the clothes he wore... he even made the simple, dark jeans look kinda elegant combined with the white button-down shirt and patent leather shoes.

"Cedric. Great to meet you, Puck!" He replied with such a civility Puck didn't think he really deserved after all the time he had spent thinking about the guys girlfriend today. But of course he didn't know that, he probably didn't know anything about him and Rachel's relationship at all. Unless Rachel told him anything about it, what brought him back to... Rachel.

* * *

"Hey Noah!" She said with a tiny smile playing on her lips, hoping it wouldn't sound as breathless as she felt. He was just so... handsome. He always had been one of the most attractive guys Rachel knew, but the time had been good to him. His hair was a bit shorter than the last time she saw him, but he still had the same muscular body with those gorgeous arms and... _Don't stare at him, Rachel, dammit!_

"Hi..." Noah replied softly after a few seconds. Maybe it was less, she always lost her track of time when she was around him. There was a moment she thought coming here had been the worst idea ever. They just stood in front of each other awkwardly, neither of them knowing what to do.

"C'mere." Puck finally said and pulled her into a tight hug. It felt good, being so close to him after that long. His hands were warm on her back and she could smell his aftershave, which he apparently didn't change over the last years. Rachel had told him once that she really liked it and she wondered if he remembered that. Before she could do anything stupid like ask him, a stopwatch went off somewhere and signaled that the food was ready.

"Puck can you help me with the pots?" Quinn asked, so Rachel pulled back and gave him a small smile before he turned around and walked into the kitchen with his girlfriend. Exactly, with his girlfriend. And her boyfriend was still standing next to her. For a second she panicked that he might knew what was going on in her head, but when she looked at him he just smiled and kissed the top of her head.

"Oh, you don't need to stand there! Sit down, please." Quinn said and placed a salad bowl in the middle of the laid table. Chivalrous like he was, Cedric pulled the chair out for her so she could sit down.

"Thanks!" She said and beamed up to him. He bent down and kissed her lips soundly just as Puck walked back into the room with the food.

"I made this for the first time so I can't promise that it'll be good!" Quinn laughed as she sat down across from Cedric.

"Oh, I'm sure it will!" The green-eyed guy replied politely.

"Well then, let's try it out! I'm starving." She laughed and began to hand out the lasagna.

* * *

So, the hug was kinda weird. Not the physical part of it, of course. It was great holding Rachel that close again after all that time. But there were so many things happening in his head, he though it would explode any second: her hair tickling his hand, her arms put around his waist, her heartbeat he could feel against his quest, her smell, her everything. But what was even more awkward was when he came into the living room with the food and saw that guy kissing her. It did something to him and Puck hated that. It wasn't planned like that. He was supposed to see that she was happy and then be happy for her himself. The first part seemed to be true, now he just had to work on the second one.

"So Cedric, what are you doing? Are you in the music business like Rachel?" His girlfriend asked after a while of small talk.

"Oh lord, no. I couldn't survive a day with the amount of money I'd make with my singing! I used to sing when I was younger, but my mom always compared me to a dying walrus, so I gave that up." Cedric laughed and Puck had to smile. Not really because of the context, but because he remembered the multiple times Rachel complimented him on his singing voice. And dying walrus weren't the words she used.

"I'm a doctor, actually. Cardiologist, to be exact. There always has been something really impressive about the human heart to me, the way it works and how it keeps everything else together. My grandfather was a doctor, too. That's probably were I got that whole enthusiasm from!"

"Wow, that's truly impressing! You have to be really smart and ambitious then. It takes pretty long to get a doctor title, right?" Quinn was visibly really interested what Rachel's boyfriend had to say. Granted, heart surgery sounded pretty cool, but still, it was _that_ special.

"Yeah, doesn't that shit take like forever?" Puck interfered. Quinn hit him with her foot under the table because apparently she didn't think it was appropriate to describe studying medicine as shit, but Cedric just laughed. "Well, I'm 26 and already saved a lot of lives, so for me - everything was totally worth it!"

Such. A. Poser. Noah wondered if that was how he wrapped Rachel round his little finger. But his I'm-so-great-and-save-lives-everyday number didn't work on him.

"So how did the two of you meet?" Puck asked to change the topic. He didn't really want to know how they met, but it was better than hearing Cedric brag about his great job. Also, Rachel was surprisingly quite and even though it was a bit risky, he caught her eyes for a few seconds before staring back at his plate.

"We met in Mexico two years ago." Cedric began and immediately caught Pucks attention. Two years ago... that was right after Kurt and Blaine's wedding!

"Yeah, we were both in the same hotel for the summer. I went with Tina and Ced with his brother Nathaniel. It was just meant to be a summer fling, I guess, but then we discovered we both lived in New York and... just stayed in contact!"

It hit him like a freight train. Rachel had met him Mexico.

* * *

_"Come with me!" She suddenly said, her head still on his naked chest and his fingers playing with her soft hair. _

_"What?" Puck laughed and looked down at her._

_"Come with me. To Mexico. My flight goes tomorrow morning. Just... come with me!" He didn't know what to say, but he knew that saying nothing would be even worse. _

_"Babe I can't just-"_

_"It's just for three weeks!" She interrupted him. "We'll figure something out!" The girl in his arms sounded so hopeful and he wanted nothing more than to just say yes. _

_"Rach... I-I really want to, but... I can't. Not when..." He trailed off._

_"Not when Quinn is still your girlfriend." The tiny brunette finished for him. _

_"I just have to... I don't know, think of some stuff and maybe we can-"_

_"Please just... don't say anything now!" She stood up and quickly pulled her purple summer dress over her head, scanning the room for her panties. _

_"Rach, please don't go. I'm sorry, okay. I just don't know... hey, stop!" He took her hands in his to keep her from combing her finger through her tousled hair. "Come on, let's talk about this!" _

_"About what?" _

_"About us." He said softly, never leaving her big, brown eyes. _

_"There is no _us_!" Rachel pulled her hands from his and took her purse. "Let's just see this as a stupid mistake and move on forward with our lives. Yours is in Lima with Quinn and mine is here in New York!" She turned around and walked to the door, leaving him standing there like a shot, little puppy._

_"You... you can't be serious!" He breathed. Puck wanted to scream, but his voice didn't obey. Rachel couldn't really mean that, could she? This thing between them meant just as much to her as it did to him... right? But her voice sounded so harsh and he didn't find any kind of irony or disguise in her eyes when she turned around and looked at him._

_"Goodbye, Noah." And with that she was gone._

* * *

**And that's it for now!  
****Sooo what do you think? Interested in reading more?  
Also: this is my first story, so I hope it wasn't too bad?  
Please tell me your thoughts in a review! :)**


	2. Smile

**A/N: Thank you for all the reviews, follows & favorites. I just love getting some feedback! From now on I'll try to update every few days, but I don't wanna promise anything I can't keep so... we'll see! Anyway, here is part 2. Enjoy!  
**

* * *

Rachel could feel Noah's eyes on her, but she was too afraid to actually look at him. Okay, so maybe she didn't play fair, reminding him on the last time they had seen each other without letting Quinn or Cedric really know it. At least she hoped Quinn didn't know anything! But the former head cheerleader probably wouldn't be this nice to her if she knew what went down between Rachel and her boyfriend all these month ago in that tiny hotel room Blaine's parents paid for. Thing was, Rachel just wanted to get some kind of reaction from Noah. Anything that showed her that he didn't forget everything that happened. And he was the one who brought it up, so really, why did she feel so guilty now?

"And of course I wanted to prove that I could do it, so I just climbed that tree. And it was fine... until I looked down! So to make a long story short: the fire department had to come to heave me down again because I was clinging to the branches, not moving a muscle. I seriously was just seconds away from crying and thanks to Dominic Johnson and his stupid friends, the next day everyone at school knew that I had Acrophobia!"

Cedric was telling Quinn some story from his childhood, but Rachel didn't really pay attention. She had already heard it more than once and anyway, she was way too occupied thinking about the boy who sat not even two meters away from her, even if it felt more like 200 miles. It was just so frustrating! She could count the times he had looked her in the eyes tonight on one hand and she wasn't sure if she either wanted to slap him for being such an idiot or cry because he was so different than the last time she had seen him. Was it really that hard to act like a normal, decent human being for once without making her feel totally unwelcome and stupid? But Rachel knew that slapping him or crying both weren't really options right now, since his girlfriend and her boyfriend were sitting next to them. She had to keep that in mind.

"I hope everyone still has a little space left for a dessert?" Quinn asked happily and looked at her, obviously not suspecting anything that was going on in Rachel's head.

"Yeah, sure." She answered with a small smile. Some more food couldn't hurt. At least she had an excuse not to talk then.

"Great! I'm just going to clear the table and... Noah, you could show them around a bit!" It was more of a command than a question. She realized quickly that Noah was totally used to this tone. Either that, or he just didn't care.

"Of course." He mumbled, got up and started to walk to the door, expecting his two guests to follow him. So they did. And Rachel just had to stare at his gorgeous backside as he walked down the hall in front of her. _Damn him and his good genes._

The first room Puck showed them was small with one big window and plain white walls. The only furniture was a big desk out of dark timber, a cupboard from the same wood and two well-ordered file cabinets. Everything was really tidy and Rachel was sure there wasn't even a thin layer of dust on the big cabinet.

"This is Quinn's office. She's a realtor, in case she hasn't told you yet."

Rachel was impressed, she had to admit. She never thought Quinn would ever have a job like this; not because she was stupid, she wasn't at all, but because she always had seemed like the type of girl who stayed home and raised her children without having to go to a serious work everyday. But this suited Quinn pretty well. She had the kind of needed charm to sell houses and apartments.

"If you ask me, this room is way to boring. I'd probably kill myself if I had to sit in here for hours, staring at a blank wall and trying to find the right houses to fulfill all of the insane desires of my customers, but Quinn spends a lot of time in here. Maybe that explains part of her insanity!" Noah laughed, stole a mint from the little, pink glass bowl on Quinn's desk and popped it into his mouth. _The way he licked his lips afterwards was just so... Dammit, Rachel!_ "Anyway, it's plain ass boring in here. So let's get to the next room."

He showed them the bedroom, the little fitness room that clearly got Cedric all excited and the guest room, which he said, had only been used once by Quinn's weird cousin and was totally unnecessary. Their house was nice. Small, but enough for two people. Rachel wondered if the guest room was meant to be a nursery one day, but she pushed that thought away quickly. She really didn't want to think of Quinn and Puck having another baby. Or of Quinn and Puck doing what you need to do to get a baby...

"I'm going to use the restroom now, if you excuse me." Cedric suddenly said as they were back in the living room and all of the calmness that had built up in Rachel over the last hour streamed away. She wanted to protest, but how could she do that without sounding completely insane? So that's how she found herself standing alone in front of the one and only, Noah Puckerman, not knowing what to say. Apparently he didn't either because a few seconds passed by without anyone saying a word. Then he cleared his throat and broke the silence.

"So, how's New York?" He asked in a casual voice, not even bothering to look at her for more than one, split second.

"Um it's... it's great." Rachel answered and immediately felt stupid. _It's great? That's all?_ "I mean... it's exactly what I always though it would be, only more. It's beautiful and loud and full of people, but even though you're never really alone, sometimes you can still feel lonely. Does this make sense? I definitely felt that way when I first moved into my own apartment after living with Kurt for two years! I mean I lived in the dorms of NYADA for some months before that and my roommate was rarely at home, but there was still stuff of another person lying around and..." _Jesus, Rachel, stop babbling._ "What I want to say is that it's something to get used to. Living alone." He just nodded silently and she wondered if he really didn't care at all or if that was just Puck being Puck.

"And you? Do you enjoy working as a Physical Therapist?" Rachel asked, trying to keep the conversation up. Which was really hard, by the way, when every answer took him an hour and contained just a few words.

"It's alright. Buncha old, lazy slobs who never do their exercises so their wives have to threaten them with a divorce, but there are also a few people who really wanna change something and become independent again. It's nice to help people, I guess." Rachel smiled at him. She knew he was playing everything down and actually really loved working at Lima's physical therapy office. It was small and there weren't as many customers, but maybe that made it more special to work there, as one out of 5 or 6 employee. _Even though he could have a lot more success in mega cities like Los Angeles or New York..._

"I'm glad you're happy, Noah. I really am!" Rachel said softly. There was a second their eyes met and she could see the corners of his mouth rising up a tiny bit, before every emotion disappeared from his face and his eyes looked at the cupboard next to them.

"Yeah...thanks." He mumbled and scratched the back of his head. He always did that when he was nervous._ Good, at least she wasn't the only one who felt totally out of place._

"Puck, can you get the wine from the garage? Dessert is ready." Quinn shouted from the kitchen and Rachel had never been this happy to hear the blondes voice.

"Yeah." Puck shouted back. "Um, I have to..." He pointed at the door behind Rachel, clearly being just as relieved that this weird conversation was over.

"Oh sure!" Rachel stepped to the side to let him pass, not turning around until she heard the door fall in its lock. So... that was uncomfortable.

* * *

_What the fuck was that? ,_ Puck thought as he went to the garage. It never had been difficult to talk to Rachel, it was actually one of the easiest things in life. She always had something to tell you, there always was a topic to talk about with her. And they used to do that, a lot. He remembered many late night conversations about Neil Diamond or Star Wars (he made her watch it once and she actually quite liked it! Shocking, right?) Sometimes they argued who was they most handsome player of the New York Giants, or they laughed about the weird, chubby lady at temple who always gave the kids foreign sweets. And sometimes he just lay on his bed and listened to her voice as she went on and on about some scandal of a Broadway star he'd never heard of before.

But now everything had changed and it was just awkward to talk to her. He didn't know what to tell or ask her. Maybe it was because she seemed different. More mature and sure of herself. She wasn't the small, insecure, jewish girl he used to know anymore. She hadn't been in a long time. But when he looked into her eyes, he still saw the 18 years old girl, with all those big dreams and goals for her life, he could just laugh and joke around with. Or maybe he also saw 20 years old version of her that he let go way to easily. So did he really want to know how happy she was without him in her life? Not that he wanted to be in her life, of course. At least not anymore.

After he spent 5 minutes staring at the half empty wine refrigerator he knew he had to go back inside before Quinn came into the garage to ask what was taking so long. Because honestly, he had no answer to this. _Why in the ever-loving hell was Rachel Berry fucking with his mind this much? Even after all this time?_

"Finally." Quinn snapped as he walked back into the living room and snatched the wine from his hands.

"We already thought you fell into a gully and were wandering around in the canalisation!" Cedric said with a weird smile and Puck seriously wanted to punch him in his stupid face. He didn't know why, but he felt a strong dislike towards Rachel's lover. Maybe it was his expensive shirt, maybe the snooty shoes or maybe just the way he had his arm around Rachel's shoulders.

"Yeah, whatever." Puck huffed and sat down next to Quinn who already started to fill their expensive wine glasses. Well, they didn't cost them a penny, they were a present from Quinn's grandparents. Weird, old people, he'd say that much.

"So this is a strawberry tiramisu after my great-grandmothers recipe. It's really old, but the Fabrays always knew how to make something delicious! You'll love it."

* * *

When the awkward dinner was done, Quinn insisted on looking through old High School pictures. Rachel wasn't all that pleased.

"Aww you don't want me to see you in a pantsuit, do you?" Cedric laughed as Rachel pushed him away, a pouty expression on her face. "Oh come on, I'm sure you still looked gorgeous!" She smiled up at her boyfriend, not seeing the annoyed look Puck was shooting them. Cedric told her she was beautiful nearly everyday, at any given time. He'd compliment her on her look when they went out, whisper it in her ear when they were lying in bed together or just let it slip in a simple conversation about their next dinner or the newest episode of Doctor Who. You'd think she'd get sick of hearing those words eventually, but it was quite the opposite. He always managed to make her smile.

"I'm sorry, I don't think here are any pictures of Rachel's pantsuit!" Quinn laughed and sat down on the couch next to Rachel, a big, blue photo album in her hands.

They flicked through the pages, looking at their old school photos and class pictures. There where some of the Cheerios, the football team, even the celibacy club. Rachel didn't have that many pictures from High School. Sure, she owned some of herself and some of the Glee club (and a few other really weird clubs she'd rather not talk about anymore). But they were all in a little box on the top of her wardrobe, probably covered in dust. Leaving her past behind and starting her future, that had always been her motto when she came to New York three weeks after graduation.

"Oh look! This was taken right after we had won nationals in our Senior Year! We all wore these amazing red dresses Tina designed..." The four stared at the picture. It showed all of the Glee Club members, including Mr. Schuester, standing side by side with the big trophy in the middle. Rachel's eyes wandered to the 18 years old version of herself. She stood next to Tina and Mercedes, smiling happily into the camera just like everyone else. But there was something else on that picture that made her heart beat faster. Noah was standing behind her, his hands on her hips and his head leaned down next to hers. It looked like he was whispering something into her ear, but if he had, she couldn't remember it anymore. She glanced at Cedric, afraid of what his reaction could be. If you saw this photo for the first time without knowing any background story, you'd say that Rachel and Noah were a couple. It's not like she wanted to keep secrets from her boyfriend, it just would be a lot to explain and... it belonged to her past, so Rachel felt like it wasn't anything of his business anyway! But all of these thoughts were unnecessary. Cedric didn't even flinch, he just sat there and smiled down at the picture of his girlfriend and her high school friends.

"Look at Finn, that little bastard!" Puck suddenly laughed and pointed at his former best friend. He was standing next to Brittany and staring way to obvious at her cleavage. "I swear to god, they were so fucking around the months before graduation!"

"Puck!" Quinn shrieked and punched his thigh.

"What? It was so obvious! After you two broke up and Rachel didn't take him back, he was fucking his way through the whole cheerleader team for a while. Well, at least until he got it going with Brit. I swear I heard them the night after Nationals before we drove back to Lima again. Not a great memory." He grimaced.

So Santana had been right, Rachel thought. Back in the day, the latina once had asked Rachel if she was as pissed as herself with the whole Finn-Brittany thing. Rachel had just looked at her, confused, without any idea what she was talking about. But Santana didn't clarify it anymore, just shook her head and walked away. She wondered now why the other girl hadn't told her about it. Not that she would've care all that much, she and Finn were broken up for months by then and she hadn't cared that much about his third (?) try with Quinn just a few days after their break up either. But still, Santana had always used every single chance to make Rachel feel bad.

"Wait, so you dated Finn, too?" Cedric asked Quinn. He knew about Rachel and Finn since this was a big part of her high school experience, but she never said anything about Quinn and Finn. Just like she didn't talk about Noah and herself.

"Yes, he was my boyfriend for... a few times! But it was just another stupid high school relationship." Quinn answered shortly and turned over the page in order to change the topic. It didn't help much, at least not for Rachel. On the next picture were Sam, Quinn, Puck and Rachel. They were all sitting next to each on the floor of their hotel room in Chicago. Rachel was between Pucks legs, his arms around her waist and her head leaning against his chest. Quinn and Sam were sitting next to each other with the blondes head resting on his shoulder. Rachel remember exactly when this photo had been taken. Exactly one day before Nationals 2012.

* * *

_"Noah, stop tickling me!" Rachel squealed and tried to get out of his hold. He was laughing hard, pulling her even tighter against his chest._

_"Sorry, babe. But you're so pretty when you laugh." He breathed in her ear so that nobody else in the room could hear it. Rachel felt the blood rushing into her cheeks, but she blamed it on the fact that it was just really hot in this small, sticky hotel room._

_"Why is here no air conditioning?" She groaned, trying to fan herself some cold air into the face. It didn't really work._

_"Well, maybe you should just wear less cloths!" Puck suggested for what Rachel elbowed him. "Ouch! Just trying to help ya, princess!" He blew some cold air into her neck which made her arch her back and let out a breathy sound. In another situation, Puck would have thought this was one of the hottest things ever... nah, who was he kidding, he already thought it was!_

_"Stop it!" Rachel turned around the best she could between his legs and glared at him._

_"You're hot when you're all pissy, you know that?" She gaped at him. _Did he just call me hot in front of everyone else?_ But no one was paying attention anyway, they were all trying to show Quinn and Tina the dance steps in case Mercedes didn't recover until their performance tomorrow. Still._

_"You... don't say things like that!" Rachel hit her small fist on his chest, which just made him laugh again. Just as she wanted to pull away, he caught her wrist and held her close to him._

_"Why? Cause it get's you all hot thinking about the things I could do to you if you only let me?" Suddenly Noah was just inches away from her face. Rachel could feel his warm breath on her lips and for a second she thought he'd really kiss her. _Would she have let him? Maybe, she didn't know._ But he just sat there, holding her wrist between his fingers, gently rubbing small circles over her pulse point with his thumb and not leaving her eyes with his. That's when she realized he had ask a question and really expected an answer._

_"N-No, of course not! Why would I do such... thing?" _Really convincing, Rachel, great job.

_"Hey you two. What's going on?" Quinn asked as she sank down next to Rachel and Puck. Maybe she was their rescue, Rachel wasn't sure._

_"Puck is being narcissistic!" Rachel responded before he could say anything stupid and freed herself from his touch. Not that she had to try all that hard, he didn't even try to hold her back._

_"So nothing new I guess?" Sam laughed as he joined them._

_"Thanks a lot, _Bro_!" The hazel eyed boy behind her huffed._

_"Are you done yet?" Rachel asked the others to change the topic._

_"No, we're just taking a break." Quinn sighed. "It's just... Sugar is driving me insane! I know she's trying to help us with the dance steps, but damn, I just need a break from her babbling! She's worse than you, B. And that says something!" _

_"Sugar is like a freaky ADHD patient who took the wrong medicine so now everything is multiplied! At least Rachel doesn't talk bullshit _all_ the time and can actually shut up for a few minutes." Puck said and poked Rachel in her side. When she looked at him he just send her a small smile. No smirk, no grin, a real, honest smile. Rachel adored this smiled. The way his eyes softened and lit up. So she couldn't keep herself from smiling right back at him. _

_"Hey let me take a picture!" Brittany said and threw herself on the ground in front of them._

_"Is that my camera, Brit?" Quinn asked, raising one eyebrow. The blonde, jittery cheerleader just nodded happily. "Yeah, I borrowed it! So and now... SMILE!"_

_And with that, Puck pulled her back against his broad, warm chest and slung his arms around her waist before she could react in any kind of way._

_"Smile, Rach. Remember what I just told you." Puck murmured into her ear and smirked when he saw the corners of her mouth rising up. "Good girl."_

_"Oh shut it!" Rachel giggled and let herself sink deeper into his embrace._

* * *

**And that was the second part! Any thoughts? I'd love to hear them!  
Also: what do you think about those little flashbacks? They weren't planned originally, but now I kinda enjoy writing them. So if you want more, I'll give you more. Just say so!**


	3. Chamber of Horrors

**A/N: Again, thank you all so much for the great feedback! I seriously grin like a Cheshire cat every time I see that someone has reviewed, followed or favorited! So yeah, I really appreciate it. Anyway, enjoy the next chapter!**

* * *

Puck knew it was a bad idea to look at old high school photos the second Quinn mentioned it. Still, he didn't say anything. For once because he didn't want to anger his girlfriend (that always ended bad - for him) and also because he thought it could maybe take a bit of this weirdness out and loosen up everything...

Wrong. So wrong! There were pictures of him and Rachel in Quinn's fucking album. Why did she have it anyway? They never talked about their past, let alone look at old pictures and videos. But here he was, sitting next to his girlfriend of 3 years, looking at a picture of him and his kinda-ex-girlfriend that sat two meters away from him. That alone wouldn't have been as bad if it had been Santana or, hell, even Zizes (even though Quinn would've run amok). But this was Rachel. She wasn't just his Ex-girlfriend. Shit, he wasn't even sure she ever really was his girlfriend in the first place! That week in sophomore year was nothing against what happened in their senior year (or at Kurt and Blaine's wedding). But whatever was going on between them back then, they hadn't been a couple.

"Have you heard of anyone else from Glee Club, Rachel?" Quinn suddenly asked and pulled him out of his thoughts.

"Not really... I still talk to Tina every few month on the phone and we try to visit each other at least twice a year, but it isn't that easy." Rachel explained and he tried his hardest not to stare at her to obvious. He just couldn't help it, she was just so... overwhelming. In the best way possible.

"Tina lives in Seattle, right?" Quinn asked. Finn had told them this piece of information a few months ago when he was back in Lima for a week, visiting his mom and Burt. Apparently he had it from Kurt, who had it from Mercedes, who had it from Brittany and Brittany... well, Puck wasn't so sure anymore, but it's safe to say he didn't really listen because, surprise, he didn't care. It seemed like he wasn't the only one who lost contact to nearly everyone; the others weren't that close either.

"Yeah! We actually went there together for the first time a year ago, but she immediately fell in love with the city and decided to go back again... and stay!" Rachel explained and Puck wondered what she had done in Seattle. It was a rainy, depressing city at the end of the world and not exactly a holiday destination.

"And she works there as a designer?" His girlfriend asked and he was already so bored with this conversation. He leaned back against the sofa and stared at the white ceiling. Granted, maybe he should show a little more interest in his former classmates lives, but it's not like they cared more about his life then he did about theirs. The only people he was genuinely interested in were Rachel and Mike. And Quinn, of course.

"Yeah well, she owns a small boutique with a friend there, but the clothes are rather... special. You know, there are a few normal shirts and pants and stuff like that, but they also make costumes for Halloween or Carnival and some really unique wedding dresses. It's a mixture out of everything, but they're pretty successful with it from what I know." Puck pictured a gloomy, little room with cobwebs, stuffed with Vampire costumes and black wedding dresses. He knew that this probably wasn't even close to what the store looked like in reality, but he still had this picture of the Goth-Tina from sophomore year in his head every time someone talked about her.

"Sounds... interesting." Quinn laughed. "We should visit her some time, Puck!" She looked at him and he had to force a smile. Visiting the chamber of horrors in Seattle? There were a few thousand things he'd rather do than that.

"I'd really like to see everyone again! I mean, Finn still comes around every Christmas and Mike and Puck go on their 'Men weekends' from time to time, but I haven't heard from Mercedes or Sam or even Santana in ages!" The blonde sighed. Who thought that one day she'd miss all of their Glee club friends, considering half of them never really were her friends in the first place and she always complained about them? He didn't.

"Oh my god, I know! We should plan a reunion!" Quinn suddenly blurted and gripped his tight excitedly.

_Oh hell to the no!_

* * *

"I'm so tired." Rachel yawned, climbed into her white four-poster bed and pulled the pink covers over her legs.

"No wonder, Twinkle, it's already midnight!" Cedric said softly as he unbuttoned his white button-down shirt and put it away neatly in his corner of Rachel's old wardrobe.

"God, how did it get this late..." She groaned and sunk deeper into the mattress. Originally, she had planned to leave somewhere around 9 pm so she and Cedric could talk some more with her dads or watch a movie... But then Quinn got the _wonderful_ idea to invite all of their former classmates for a reunion and, of course, wanted to start with the planning right away. So that's how she found herself sitting on the brown fabric sofa for three more hours, writing down things Quinn dictated they had to do. She wasn't totally against the idea of a Glee Club reunion, it just could have waited another one or two years. Maybe five.

"Quinn likes to talk just as much as you, I guess." Her boyfriend chuckled and climbed under the covers next to her. "But I like her. She sure knows how to boss people around and sometimes she has this slightly arrogant look on her face, but overall she's really nice."

"Oh, as if you don't have this 'slightly arrogant look' Mister! I see it every time I visit you at the hospital and you're talking to one of your trainees, or wait, how do you call them? Clinic slaves!" Rachel huffed, half-ironically, and wrapped her arm around his waist.

"Hey, they just have to learn that working in a hospital is anything but easy! That's the first lesson and if they can't even handle that, then they should quit right away." He said quietly, not to wake her dads.

"Right. And I thought you just want someone to boss around!" Rachel countered as she drew small circles on his shaved chest.

"Well, it certainly has its appeal..." They both laughed and Cedric dropped a kiss on Rachel's head.

"And what do you think about Noah?" She asked after a while, not sure if it was a great idea to turn the attention to the boy she couldn't stop thinking of, even if she lay in bed next to her boyfriend. Did she feel guilty about it? Yes. Could she prevent it? No.

"He's alright. I mean, he didn't say a lot tonight, so I can hardly judge him, but he seems to be a bit... harsh. You know, the way he talks and what he says in general." Rachel knew exactly what he meant. She had thought the same when she first met Noah. Well, when he first threw a slushie in her face and she saw him laughing with his friends. But then Glee happened and the more she got to know him, the more he let her see his softer sides.

"Yeah, Noah can definitely be a little rough around the edges. But if you get to know him better, he is a really... lovely guy." Rachel had to stop herself before she said something else. Lovely wasn't the first word that came to her mind when she thought about Noah, but the first she could actually say to her boyfriend.

"I don't doubt that. You wouldn't have dated him if he was that much of an asshole as he wants people to think he is!"

For a second Rachel's heart stopped beating. Had he... did Cedric just... ? She turned her head around to face him. "What makes you think I dated him?"

"Well, the two of you looked really cosy on those pictures Quinn showed us tonight. And with all the things you've told me about him, I just figured you two had something going on at some point." Cedric shrugged. If he was uncomfortable with this conversation, he managed to hide it pretty well.

"We did. For like, a week in sophomore year. But he had feelings for Quinn, who was already pregnant at this point, so that was all..." Rachel turned around again, afraid that he could see in her eyes that she wasn't completely honest. They _did_ date for a week in sophomore year, but that wasn't all. Not by a long shot.

"Well, at least I don't have to consider him as a rival then!" Cedric laughed and combed his fingers through her long, brown hair. Rachel just huffed, pecked him on the lips and switched off the lights.

As she lay in the dark she tried her hardest to shove the thought of Noah Puckerman as her boyfriend as far away from her as she possibly could. Without any success. It was already to late to act like Noah didn't exist, now that she had seen him again and even talked to him. But did that mean Cedric should consider Puck as a rival? Rachel just hoped the next two weeks would pass by really quickly so she could fly back to New York and continue with her normal life where Noah Puckerman didn't have a place in her mind at all.

* * *

"Puck, are you finally done?" Quinn called from their bedroom down the hall as he was drying the last cleaned dishes.

"Just a minute!" He shouted back. She had asked him to do the plates because, apparently, she was already _so tired_ and she had cooked tonight and anyway, he should do more in this household and not just cry for food when he was home, yada yada yada... Yep, she was a little bit moody tonight. But instead of going to bed to actually get some rest, Quinn shouted something across the hall every few minutes, waiting until he was done to join her. She could have helped him with the washing up and they would've been way faster, but you know. She was _so tired.._. Women!

"You already said that 10 minutes ago!" She replied in an annoyed tone. "Maybe you should do the washing-up more often so you'd learn how to do it faster!" In moments like this he was just thankful to live in a house instead of a tiny flat with thin walls and neighbors who'd call the police when their arguing got a little too loud. Which happened more and more often.

"And maybe you shouldn't keep me from doing it with your constant talking! I'm sure I'd be faster than too!" Puck shouted back, shoved the last plate in the cupboard and hung the towel over the cold heating to let it dry.

"Don't yell at me, Noah Puckerman!" He stocked for a moment. Quinn rarely used his real, first name! Only when she either was really pissed or frustrated with him. So it wasn't all that weird when his thoughts slipped to the tiny brunette that made his name sound so much better coming from her soft lips. _Right?_

"Puck! Are you done now?"

Jeez, he'd never get used to this.

* * *

"What did you think of Cedric?" Quinn suddenly asked as they were lying in bed together. Yes, he actually made it there before she came into the kitchen and pulled him into their bed by his balls.

"Dunno. I don't know a lot about him." He just mumbled. Well, maybe he would know more now if he had actually listened to what Cedric said without constantly thinking of the dudes girlfriend the whole night.

"I think he's really nice! And the way he talked about his job was just really impressive, don't you think? I mean, literally holding the live of another human being in your hands... I don't think I could do that. You?"

"Dunno." Puck answered again. Hopefully she'd get the hint and just drop the topic.

Or well, maybe she'd be Quinn and didn't.

"I was surprised to hear that he can't sing, though!" The blonde laughed. "I always expected Rachel to have some kind of Broadway-boyfriend who is at least half as talented as her. Someone like Jesse St. James, or even Finn." _I'm way more talented than Finn,_ he thought. "But a blonde Cardiologist from Colorado? Not really what I had pictured."

"As long as she is happy." Puck replied. _Uh huh, sure. That's all that matters. Keep lying to yourself._

"She seems to be, they make a really cute couple! And I guess opposites attract, otherwise I wouldn't be lying next to you right now!" Quinn said and moved closer to him to squeeze herself under his arm. Puck just hummed, switched off the little bedside lamp and kissed the top of Quinn's head.  
Her shampoo didn't smell at all like the strawberry vanilla shampoo Rachel used since she was 17.

* * *

**So this chapter was a bit shorter than the first two. Sorry for that!  
But before you say anything: in the next two chapters you'll finally get some more Puckleberry action, so... get excited!  
Like always: let me know what you think through a review and (****hopefully) **I'll see you soon! 


	4. Your fragrance is intoxicating

**A/N: I feel like I say that at the beginning of every chapter, but THANKS FOR THE FEEDBACK! Since this is my first story I though no one would want to read it, so now I'm just really happy! However... here comes chapter 4! **

* * *

As Rachel slipped into the bathtub full of hot, steaming water, she immediately felt her whole body relax. There were just a few things on this planet that could make her feel this loose: yoga, a massage, great orgasms and bubble baths! Maybe she could combine three out of these things, she thought as her boyfriends hands slipped around her to lie on her belly.

"This is good." She sighed satisfied and took a deep breath of the coconut scent that was slowly spreading in the whole bathroom.

"The bubble bath?" Cedric laughed and kissed the top of her head.

"Yes. Everything. This, with you. We never do this..." Rachel put her tiny hands on top of Cedric's large ones and entwined her fingers with his.

It was true. They never did things like this, just taking a hot bath together or lying in bed for hours, doing nothing. The main reason for that was, of course, his job and its insane working hours. Sometimes he got ready for work when Rachel was just coming home from a late shift at the restaurant she worked for since her third semester at NYADA. Originally, she had planed to work there until she graduated, just to earn extra money and get some work experience. Her dads had spoiled her since she was one day old, but Rachel wanted to stand on her own feet and become an independent woman. Just like Barbra did. So they started to just pay half of her rent. _(Hey, everyone has to start small!)_ But after graduation a few month ago, she found herself having even more free time and since it could take a while until she actually got a leading part in an audition, she stayed at the little Italian family business.

"You know I'd love to do this more often, Twinkle." Cedric said in a low voice and let his left hand draw shapes on Rachel's stomach.

"But you can't because of your work, I know. And I get it, really... sometimes I just wish you were a primary school teacher or a cook or really anything that doesn't require three-quarters of your week!" She sighed deeply, let her head fall to the side and pressed her cheek against his chest. She understood it, she did. Hell, she was a performer and spent most of her time singing, dancing and practicing scenes. And when the time was right, she would get her shot on Broadway and be just as busy as he was now. But until then, she would spend one half of the day at the little theater 20 minutes away from her apartment, watching the others rehearse and secretly hoping the lead would drip over something, fall and break her legs so Rachel got a chance to shine as Maria in the Off-Broadway production of West Side Story, and the other half working at the diner, doing useless stuff and missing her boyfriend. So right now she had the right to be at least a little bit frustrated with all the time Cedric was spending at the hospital instead of their apartment.

"Let's not think about that now and just enjoy the moment. Carpe Diem!"

"Oh god..." Rachel giggled and turned around to look at him. "Say that again!"

"What? Carpe Diem?" Cedric laughed.

"That sounds so weird!" She teased him.

"Hey, I took latin for 6 years!" Thank god there hadn't been any courses at McKinley because Rachel sure as hell would've taken it to 'gain experience'.

"But that's already like... 8 years ago! Wow, you're old! Should I start calling you grandpa now?"

"Alright, that's it. You're gonna pay for that!" Cedric said before splashing two hands full of water in her face.

"No wait, my hair!"

* * *

Just as Rachel had dried herself up after spending an hour in the bathtub with her boyfriend, her phone started ringing. She pulled it out of her little hand back and saw the Quinn's name flashing across the screen. The blonde had typed her number into her phone yesterday because she insisted on spending more time with her while she was in Lima. Rachel had decided to ignore the weird look (a mixture out of annoyance and panic) Noah was shooting them.

"Hey Quinn!" Rachel answered the phone when Cedric walked in, just wearing casual, blue boxer shorts. He smiled at her and went to grab some clothes from her dresser.

"I'm good. Just took a long bath!" She said into the phone, watching her boyfriend getting dressed. He was really handsome, she couldn't deny that. Even if his upper arm muscles weren't as trained as the ones of someone else... Who's girlfriend was talking right now! _Rachel, pay attention. _

"Today? Um... could you please wait a second, I have to ask Cedric!" At his girlfriends words the blonde boy spun around.

"Quinn asked if I wanted to come over tonight to watch a movie and do some girls stuff." Rachel explained to her boyfriend, biting her lip.

"Yeah? That's great." He said smiling and pulled a simple, white shirt over his head. Cedric always wore things like that, keeping it simple. The only shirt he owned that wasn't plain was the one with the phone booth from Doctor Who Rachel bought him for his birthday last May. The rest of his wardrobe consisted of normal shirts and sweaters, mostly in one or two colors, sometimes with a number or lettering on them.

"So you don't mind?" Rachel asked doubtfully. She didn't really want to leave her boyfriend alone in her yellow child's room. Granted, her dads would be there as well, but he didn't know them that well yet and she didn't want to push him into a weird situation. This was their holiday together, she couldn't just disappear for a while, could she? Well according to her boyfriend she could.

"Not at all. I have to make some calls at the hospital anyway. And I promised Nathaniel to keep him up to date of what's happening here in Lima. So go and have fun with your old friend, I will be just alright!" Rachel smiled at the mention of Cedric's little brother. Nathan was 7 years younger than Cedric and still lived with their parents in Colorado, but the two boys were closer than any siblings Rachel had even met. They talked every week on the phone and visited one another every few weekends, so Rachel had already met Cedric's mini-me a few times. (Seriously, the similarities were striking!)

"Thanks!" She kissed him soundly on the cheek and went back to her phone call with Quinn to accept her offer to come over tonight. She wondered if Noah would be there too. But what else would he do on a Tuesday night? Maybe go out with friends or visit his mom. Did she want him to be there? Well... that was a clear yes!

* * *

Since it was mid August, it was warm enough to go outside the house at 8 pm without a jacket. Rachel just wore cream-colored sandals and one of her favorite sundresses. It was blue and white and had a little, cute bow just beneath her breasts. She debated whether or not to take the car, but she decided against it just so she could feel the last rays of sun on her skin before the night would fall over Lima. As she started to walk, the sun was slowly dipping behind the horizon, turning the sky into a muted orange color with a few pink, puffy clouds. It looked stunningly beautiful and so different from the sunsets in New York. Not better, just different. In situations like this she wished she had a photographic memory, just so she could memorize this image forever.

When she finally arrived at Quinn and Puck's house 15 minutes later, the blonde opened the door after her first ring.

"Hi Rachel! You look great!" The girl said and pulled her into a tight hug. "Come in. I already made us some snacks!"

* * *

"Hey Puck!" His best friend said, patted him on the back just like he always did and sunk down next to him on a bar stool.

"Sup, Chris?" Puck replied and pushed a beer into the other guys hand.

"Nothing much. Had a pretty stressful day, Jess chased me down the mall, searching for the perfect baby crib. But other than that!" The dark-haired boy laughed. He and his girlfriend Jessica were expecting their first child and even though he played it down most of the time, Puck knew that his best friend was actually really excited about it.

"Did she get what she wanted?"

Chris looked at him for a second before answering. "Doesn't she always?" Both boys laughed and clinked their beer bottles together.

"So, what's up with you? Chris asked and raised his eyebrows.

"Nothing, why do you ask?" Puck took another sip from his bottle, feeling the cold liquid sliding down his throat.

"Well, you called me to get drunk on a Tuesday night! You never do this just because you're bored... does Quinn drive you crazy again?"

Noah scoffed. He had already complained about his girlfriend more than once in his best friends presence, so it wasn't all that weird that this was Chris' first thought.

"Na, that's not the reason." Chris looked at him, waiting for a clear answer. "So there is this old High School friend of me and Quinn." He started.

"And? Come one, spill, dude! I have to be home in two hours or Jess will come here herself and drag me home." He wasn't kidding. His girlfriend got pretty demanding since the pregnancy hormones started to kick in.

"She and her boyfriend came over for dinner yesterday and now she's at my place again. Q and her are watching some stupid chick-flicks or something."

"So... you don't like her?" Chris asked.

"No, that's not it..." Puck hesitated, not sure whether or not to tell his best friend about Rachel. He hadn't told anyone what had went down between the two of them yet. No one. It just had felt too personal and honestly, who should he have talked to? Quinn? Yeah cause that would've turned out just great.

"What then? Dude, you gotta give me some information here. Otherwise I can't tell you to stop being stupid and get over it!" The blue-eyed boy huffed.

"Tried to get over it, isn't working. Now I'm here to get some distraction. So if you could just stop talking about it I'd be really fucking thankful!" Puck groaned, drowned the last sips of his beer and ordered a new one.

"Alright. You're obviously not gonna tell me anything tonight, so... how about a round of table football?" His friend offered and stood up.

"You already lost, dude!" Puck laughed and followed him. With some luck his plan would work and he could forget about _her_ for at least a few hours.

* * *

Her evening with Quinn was surprisingly nice. They watched 'Easy A', ate chocolate Ice cream and painted each others toe nails in funny colors. Not really what Rachel had expected when she first got Quinn's call, but whatever, she had a lot of fun tonight! Which was maybe also thanks to Noah. Or well, his absence. Quinn said he spontaneously went to a bar with his best friend and left just a few minutes before she came. Rachel didn't think this was a coincidence. He was clearly avoiding her, not even trying to hide the fact that he didn't want to spend any time around her. Of course she didn't tell that Quinn, but she couldn't stop thinking about the hazel eyed boy. Why did he do that? Yes, it had been awkward between them the day before, but it wouldn't get any better when he just didn't talk to her for the next two weeks. Well, tomorrow he'd have to talk to her.

She slipped into her sandals, hugged Quinn goodbye and left the little, white house. Just as she was about to close the gate to the Fabray-Puckerman garden, she saw _him_ 20 meters away. Noah. He was walking down the sidewalk with his head down, dressed in a simple green shirt and light blue jeans. He still managed to make it look hot somehow. Handsome. He looked handsome! Not... _dammit_.

He nearly run her over. Just before he would have crashed into her, his head snapped up and he stopped abruptly.

"Hi..." She said and hated how breathy her voice sounded.

"Hey." Noah said and nodded at her. She could smell the alcohol on his breath and it really shouldn't be this sexy, considering Rachel didn't even like beer all that much.

But then he stepped around her without another word and made his way towards the front door. _Seriously? _

"Noah!" Rachel called after him before she even knew what to say. He turned around and looked at her.

"Yeah?" His voice sounded rough and she hated what this did to her stomach.

"Are you avoiding me?"

* * *

Fuck. This wasn't his plan. He didn't went to that bar with Chris to walk into her afterwards. But how could he know that she would stay three fucking hours? What did they do this long anyway? (Well, he could think of a few things he'd done with Rachel for three hours, but he didn't allow his mind to travel to these forbidden places yet. _Ever, he meant ever!_) But now she was standing in front of him with this uncertain look on her face, looking so goddamn hot in that short dress that it nearly hurt.

"Are you avoiding me?" Shitfuckgoddamnfuckingfuckshitdamn.

Yes. "No. Why would I?" He responded, looking at the tree behind her because he was too afraid to actually look into her eyes.

"I don't know, maybe because you're not talking to me and decide to go out when you know I'm coming over?" Puck could see that she was pissed, even though she tried to hide it. And he couldn't even hold it against her. He had been avoiding her and it kinda was a shitty move. (Considering how they used to act around each other.) Thing was, he didn't know what else he could do to make everything less awkward.

"Well I have a life too, you know. 'm not gonna leave my friend hanging just because you decided to come over." Okay, if he though the situation was bad before, he didn't make it better now. She was angry. Fine, he could work with that, he deserved it. But now he saw something else flashing through her eyes. Hurt. _God, why the hell was he so fucking stupid?_

"I didn't mean to... it just seemed like you did." Rachel said silently and looked down at her shoes. They probably were fucking expensive, but made her legs look so good, every single dollar had been worth it! _Okay, why the hell was he thinking about her shoes? Or well, about her legs... made more sense now._

"I'm not." He replied a little softer. She shouldn't be sad because of him, that has never been what he had wanted.

"Good. Because I don't want it to be weird between us tomorrow."

"Tomorrow?" Puck asked perplexed.

"Quinn invited us to your barbecue party. I hope you don't mind?" Of course she fucking did.

"Nope." Maybe. Kinda. Yes. No. Not at all.

"Well, good then..." Rachel forced a smile.

"Alright." He nodded and smiled back, even though it probably looked just as fake as hers.

"I guess I'll see you tomorrow then!"

"Yup, you will."

"Good Night, Noah!" She said and turned around, throwing her long hair over the shoulder. He didn't know if she did it on purpose, but the motion blew a breeze of her sweet perfume mixed with the smell of her own skin in his face. Puck watched her go for a few seconds before inhaling deeply.

"Night, Rach..." He mumbled, but she didn't hear it anymore.

* * *

**That's a wrap!  
What do you think? Good? Bad? Let me know!  
Next Up: The Barbecue Party with even more Puckleberry! Yay!**


	5. Surprise Me

**A/N: So this chapter took forever to upload, but in my defense: I really don't have a lot of time right now. I had 4 exams this week and 3 in the next, but I still try to not let you wait for too long. And I'll have holidays in a week anyway (YAY), so maybe I'll get a lot of writing done then! And now I'll just stop and let you read. Enjoy! **

* * *

"Are you ready, Ced?" Rachel asked as she stepped into her old room. It still felt weird every time she entered this room, after living 4 years in New York and visiting her dads just a few, short times over the course. But it still looked exactly the same. The yellow walls, the white four-poster bed, the carpet with the piano keys. Her dads could have made a hobby room out of it, but they _'wanted her to know that she could always come back, no matter why, when or for how long'_.

"Yeah, I just need to make a call to check up on my patients. I'll be down in 5 minutes!" Cedric replied with a smile and took his phone.

"Again? Cedric you took some days off. The whole reason for doing that is _not working _everyday!" Rachel stated. Her boyfriend, apparently, had to check up on his patients three times a day and he'd do it more often if Rachel wouldn't keep him busy all the time. Rachel thought he was weird before, never going anywhere without with his phone and his pager, but he simply had to be reachable at any time. Now however, he was on holiday, so he should be able to relax for more than four hours without thinking of sick people.

"If something happens, I don't want it to be my fault. It's my responsibility to make sure everything is alright!" He proclaimed.

"Not it's not!" Rachel whined. Sometimes she could get so frustrated with her boyfriend. He was stubborn in a way she just couldn't handle, especially if it was about his work.

"Rachel you know how important my job is to me!" Yes she did. Because he reminded her of it every goddamn day.

"Yeah, more important than anything else..." She murmured and let her head fall to the side just so she didn't have to see his face right now.

"Come on, you know that's not true!" Cedric took a step forward and tried to touch her arm, but she turned away from him.

"Just go and make your call, I don't wanna be late!" Rachel said and opened the door.

"Rach..." Cedric sighed softly. She knew he hated this. Fighting with her. But she couldn't help herself, she was just so frustrated and she didn't even have a clue where all these hard feelings came from.

"No, it doesn't matter! I'll wait downstairs." And with that she closed the door to her child's room silently and went downstairs to join her dads. It really didn't matter. He would never change that about him anyway, whatever she did, so she should just stop tying so hard.

* * *

"Puck, would you finally set up the table? The guests are coming in less than 15 minutes!" Quinn shouted from the kitchen. She had been ordering him around all day, wanting this barbecue party to be perfect. Granted, they invited a bunch of people so it should better not be a fucking disaster, but five different kinds of salad? Who gave a shit about salad when there was grilled meat anyway?

"Yeah, gimme a minute!" He called back from the living room where he filled the chips in bowls, just so it looked _more appealing_. Yeah, Quinn.

"No, you do it now! And then carry the salad bowls outside! Did you cool the drinks?" He used to think Quinn's voice sounded lovely when she talked, but the more he got to hear her screaming these past years, to more he started to doubt that.

"Yes I did. Two fucking hours ago!" He said and walked into the kitchen where his girlfriend was mixing the last salad dressing. "Everything is alright, Quinn. Just relax!" He said calmly and went up to her to kiss her bare shoulder, but she pulled away quickly and glared at him.

"No it's not! The table isn't set up, there are still fifty things standing around in the kitchen. Did you turn on the grill? Oh please tell me you didn't forget that!"

"No I did not fucking forget that! Shit, Q, could you just stop bossing me around?" He propped his arms on his hips.

"I wouldn't have to if you could just do the things on your own!" She said in a bitchy tone, going back to mixing the salad.

"But you don't even gimme a chance, you just assume I'll forget everything!" He whined and wondered, not for the first time, if his girlfriend always had been such an annoying bitch.

"Because I know you, Puck! And now go and get the paper plates." Puck just scoffed and turned around. "And the plastic cups!" Quinn yelled behind him.

_Alright, when, exactly, did he lost his balls?_

* * *

The short drive to the Puckerman-Fabray residence was rather silent. Rachel wasn't all that mad at him, just a little disappointed maybe. But this was their holiday, their chance to spend as much time together as possible, and she didn't want to ruin this with a stupid fight on the fifth day.

They parked a few meters away from the house and walked the rest. Cedric took Rachel's hand in his like he always did and she gave him a small smile. That's basically how all of their fights ended. Ignore it until it comes up again.

"Hey! Great to see you two! How are you, everything alright? Come in!" Quinn blurted happily when she opened the door. The blonde wore a light blue strapless dress and looked, like always, stunning. She guided her two new guest in the living room.

"Some people are already in the backyard! We'll grill in 20 minutes, so until then you can just talk to people. Rachel, maybe you'll meet someone you know! And just take whatever you want, we have juice, beer, sparkling wine... I have to get some more wood from the basement because Puck obviously can't count! But we'll have a little campfire later, isn't that amazing?" She gushed and Rachel had to smile at her. She loved to see people being excited about something. The way their eyes lit up and their lips couldn't stop smiling as they went on and on about it. And every person could get excited about something else. Music, Broadway, parties, food, concerts, heart valves... yeah, her boyfriend was rather weird in that area, but as long as he was happy she didn't question it.

"Thank you, Quinn!" Rachel replied with a smile.

"Do you need some help with the wood?" Cedric offered, being the perfect gentleman like always. Sometimes it could be annoying, him asking to carry this and do that for her. It sounded like he thought she couldn't do it on her own and if there was one thing Rachel hated, then it was people doubting her abilities! But she knew he didn't mean it that way (most of the time) and was just being polite and sweet.

"Oh no, I mean it would be a lot easier and faster, but you're my guest! I can't make you carry pieces of wood around the house!"

"I don't mind, really! You cooked for us the last time and you'll do it tonight, so it's only fair that I give something back." Cedric said. Another thing Rachel liked about her boyfriend: his great education and good manners. Always giving something back in return, even if he isn't asked to do so. And yes, Rachel already benefited from this many times.

"Really? That would be amazing!" Quinn was clearly relieved that she didn't have to haul everything on her own. Which, by the way, didn't fit to Quinn at all. She used to bitch around every time they had to do something in school that wasn't ideal for her nails or that could injure her in any kind of way. Rachel wondered where Noah was because she doubted that the hazel eyed boy would say no if his girlfriend asked him to get more wood. He used to carry her bags around town all the time without her even asking for it. Sure, he had complained that he looked like _a fucking girl,_ walking around with a pink shopping bag, but he never let her take them from him to carry them on her own.

"No problem! So, where to?" Cedric kissed her cheek softly and followed Quinn down the hallway. She watched them go for a moment before looking around the room. _And now?_

* * *

He seriously needed a break. Quinn drove him crazy with all of her preparations. She acted like the president was coming over for dinner, not just some of their friends. Everything had to be perfect. Thing was, Puck didn't do perfect. He was more of a do-just-enough kinda guy. So now he was hiding in the kitchen. Not really hiding, like sitting in a shelf or standing behind the door. (Not that he would fit into a shelf.) He was simply leaning against the counter and drinking some weird juice Quinn had bought. It tasted pretty good, but the green color made it look disgusting and kinda toxic.

Suddenly he heard footsteps and when he turned around, an angel was standing in front of him. Well, not really an angel, but it was as close at it would get. Rachel was standing in the door frame, looking at him hesitantly. She looked so... god he didn't even have words for it. Stunningly beautiful. Gorgeous. Amazing. Puck realized that he thought this every single time he saw her, but it was true. Her hair was straight down her back and she didn't wear a lot of make-up. Her outfit was pretty simple too, dark denim shorts and a white, loose blouse with a cute pattern. Still, the way the sun shone into her face made it look like heaven had sent her.

"Hey!" He said a few moments later when he noticed she wasn't starting any conversation.

"He talks?" Rachel asked as she entered the kitchen and crossed her arms.

"He does." Puck grinned. "Look... we had a bad start. I was kinda an asshole and-"

"Yes you were." She interrupted him, a grin playing on her lips.

"Sweet." He smirked. "So, new start?" Puck asked with one eyebrow raised, giving her his best don't-be-mad-at-me-look. With success.

"Alright. Under one condition! You have to give me something to drink right this instant or I'll probably die of thirst!" Puck smiled. Still a total drama queen. He was glad to see that not everything had changed over the last years.

"Sure thing. What do you want?" He took a glass out of the cupboard, ignoring the pack plastic cups in front of him Quinn had bought. I mean, really? Their friends where all over 20, they probably knew how to hold a glass without breaking it.

"Surprise me!" She just smiled playfully and leaned against the little cook island across from him.

* * *

_"Noah, I'm hungry. No, wait, I think I'm actually starving!" Rachel said as the shoved his legs from the couch to sit down. She had just rifled through his whole fridge, searching after something to eat. Without any success._

_"Babe I don't think that's possible." He smiled and sat up to look at her._

_"You're a horrible host!" She pouted and crossed her tanned legs so that her skirt rode up a few centimeters. _Jackpot.

_"'m not. You're just a really demanding guest." Puck said as he drew small circles on her ankle. Rachel's breath hitched as his hand slid up to her thigh, but she didn't stop him. _

_"Noah..." She said in a breathy voice._

_"Rachel." He answered softly, never leaving her eyes with his. Rachel swallowed and pressed her soft lips together._

_"I-I think we should..." She stuttered, feeling the heat in her cheeks. Noah slipped his hand under the hem of her skirt, just a few centimeters, and tapped his fingers gently against her inner tight. _

_"What should we do, Rach?" Puck asked in a seductive tone and bend his head closer to hers, making her blush even more. Sometimes Rachel couldn't believe what things this boy could do to her head (and body) without even doing all that much._

_"I think you should cook __something _for me..." She said and placed her tiny hand on his to stop him from moving it any higher. She knew that he would never do anything she didn't want to, but she also knew that, as soon as she let him go a little further, she wouldn't be able to convince herself any longer that she really didn't want it. Let alone him.

_"Babe, you're such a spoil sport!" He groaned and threw his head back. They had this little game going on for a few weeks and slowly he was getting really frustrated. Scratch that, he already was frustrated! Who knew girl could be such a tease? _

_"You know the rules, Noah!" Rachel laughed and pulled away from him. The only _rule _basically was that they _kept everything between them friendly_, her words, not his. And he had agreed cause, you know, he could be friendly in a lot of ways! If some of these happened to include Rachel lying naked beneath him? That's just a happy coincidence. _

_"Alright, alright..." He gave up (for now) and pulled his hand away."And what do you want me to cook?" He raised his eyebrows, a smile playing on his lips. He didn't cook very often and just rarely for other people, but when he did it was something kick-ass! And Rachel knew that._

_"Surprise me." She grinned and took her bottom lip between her teeth. Intentionally or not, it wouldn't take much longer until she would finally capitulate and give in to the temptation that was called Noah Puckerman. He was sure of it. _

* * *

**Du du du duuun, finally another Flashback! Yay or Nay?  
Another important question: would you like to read some, you know, light smut? It wouldn't be to graphic since this is T-rated, but it's a Puckleberry story and they have to do it at some point in the story, right? ;) I have a few ideas and I wanna know if I should just address it shortly, write a little scene or maybe even change the rating for it?! Provided you guys agree, of course.  
So yeah, let me know and I'll see you next time!**


	6. Rather safe than sorry

**A/N: I am really sorry I let you wait that long. I just had no time and when I had a few minutes I couldn't get into the mood of writing at all. I also didn't know how long this chapter should be since everything that happens in this one is kinda a built-up for the next, but it would have been too long to write it all in one, so yeah, it took me longer than usual. But I promise you'll get more soon! We're almost there. Just have a little more patience. And now, enjoy! **

* * *

After Noah had excused himself to go and take care of the meat, Rachel was left alone in the kitchen. She wondered how Quinn had convinced Noah to buy white and purple cabinets since a, it wasn't badass at all and b, Noah had always talked about how he'd buy an old, rustic kitchen with dark wooden cabinets when he had his own house. Well, some things apparently do change. She put her empty glass in the sink and wanted to leave when suddenly a handsome boy with dark hair stood in front of her.

"Hiding away in the kitchen?" He asked and Rachel was a bit stunned by his boldness. How could he just assume things like that when he didn't know her?

"Um... no, I just talked to Noah." She answered blatantly. The boy looked past her into the kitchen and quirked an eyebrow.

"But he's not here." He grinned.

Rachel crossed her arms, shooting him an annoyed look. "Yeah I can see that too, thank you very much!" She huffed. "Noah left a minute ago!"

The other boy laughed and shook his head, holding both of his hands up as if he would capitulate. "Alright, missy! Didn't accuse you of talking to yourself, did I?" He laughed, but Rachel didn't seem to get his humor and glared at him. "Alright, I'm sorry. Let's start new! Hi, I'm Chris! And what's your name?"

"Rachel." She said as she shook his hand hesitantly.

"Rachel, huh? Well now I understand why he's going nuts." Chris laughed and ran his fingers through his dark, curly hair.

"What? Who?" Rachel was confused. Who the hell was this boy? And why was he talking to her?

"Never mind. So, _Rachel_," he emphasized her name, "where are you from? Cause I know you don't live around here." The green-eyed boy said.

The whole thing was getting a little bit creepy and Rachel didn't know what to think of the stranger standing in front of her. He could be some kind of mentally disturbed murderer who'd try to rape her and bury her in the garden afterwards where she would choke and die painfully... Okay, this was rather unlikely since he was friends with Puck and Quinn, but you never know. Rather safe than sorry.

"How do you know that?" Rachel asked, studying him carefully. She talked to him since not even 5 minutes, but she already knew that this boy was a lot like Noah Puckerman. The attitude, the way he talked, his smirk. The way he go her all worked up? All Noah.

"Oh I'm not some kind of stalker, if that's what you have in mind. I'm Puck's best friend. He told me a few things about you, that's all." He just shrugged and Rachel's eyes went wide.

"He... Noah talked about me with you? W-what did he say?" She stuttered.

"Jeez, I don't know what happened between the two of you, but you make it seem like some huge secret!" Chris huffed. "He didn't really say anything. Just that he knows you from High School and you're in Lima again for a while."

Rachel nodded pensively. Why did Noah talk about her with his friend? What exactly did he say? And did he maybe even tell him more?

"Look, Rachel... Puck can be an asshole sometimes, you know? Just don't worry too much about it. He'll get his shit together eventually." Chris said, seeing the wheels in her head spinning. He sent her a small smile which she returned after a few seconds.

"Yeah, I know..." She repeated softly. Noah could be an idiot, that's for sure.

"Of course you do, you went to High School together! And from what I know he was even worse back then." He laughed. Worse? Rachel wouldn't say it like that. He had his moments where she wanted to punch him in the face really, really hard, especially the time he used to slushie her. But after Glee? Their Senior Year? Noah hadn't been acting worse than he did now. He had been... kinda amazing to her.

"Hey, let's head outside, alright? The food will be ready in about 2 minutes. Or do you wanna stay here and look at those fucking ugly cupboards for a while?" Again, that sounded so much like Puck.

"Yeah, let's go." Rachel laughed and followed her new acquaintance. She wasn't sure if she liked or hated him yet, but he definitely was quite interesting. Maybe she could even get some things about Noah out of him?

* * *

"There you are, dude!" Chris said as he spotted Puck next to the grill. "I was looking for you. Jess is talking to your weird neighbour and I just couldn't spend any second longer listening to _the best ways how to change a diaper_."

Puck laughed. Yeah, the old, chubby woman living next to them could talk your ear off. He vaguely remembered a conversation about choosing the right apples for an apple pie, but if you'd ask him now how to even make one, he'd have no idea. Good that she was just as good at baking as she was at talking. And even better that she always made tons of food and brought them over some left overs at least once a week.

"Sooo, why didn't you tell me how hot your little High School friend is?" Chris asked, grinning amused as Puck's eyes widened.

"Wait you- you already met Rachel?" He said perplexed. He had talked to her like 5 seconds ago.

"Yep, talked to her for a bit. Girl has sass, but in a cute way! And she's totally hot." Chris grinned and took the grilling tongs from his best friend to turn over the sizzling meat.

"You know that you have a fiancée, right? Jess? She's standing right over there!" Puck pointed to the tall, red-haired woman standing next to Mrs. Garton, her hand protectively on her already large belly.

"Relax, I'm not saying I wanna get into her pants tonight! Just that I really appreciate these legs in those freaking tiny denim shorts. Honestly, why do woman even buy these if they just barely cover up they ass cheeks?" Puck flinched as his best friend talked about _getting into Rachel's pants._ He didn't want to think of any dude burying himself inside of her and making her come, especially not his best friend.

"Yeah, whatever. She's hot, so what?" Puck said, trying to sound as casual as possible and took a sip of his beer.

"Just saying. I'm surprised you didn't do her already, with that booty! I mean, I can't really imagine her being ugly in High School." Ugly? No. Maybe a little bit... particular in her style of clothing, some of those animal sweater were quite amusing. But the knee-socks and mini-skirts? Totally one of his fantasies.

"You didn't sleep with her, right?" Chris asked curious, now that Puck wasn't saying anything.

Noah just shifted, keeping his eyes on the grilled meat in front of him. Well, fuck, what should he say to this? He wouldn't lie to his best friend, but he surely wouldn't tell him all about his and Rachel's love story. Wait, no, that sounded wrong. It hadn't been a love story. There hadn't been any _love_. At least not really. Maybe at one point, just a little bit, but it's not like he ever wanted... alright, _what the hell was he even thinking about?_

"_Fuck_, you did?!" Chris laughed. "Well that's a plot twist. Wait, is that the reason you're acting so weird? Because you slept together?"

"Dude could you please keep your fucking voice down!" Puck hissed, looking around to make sure no one heard it. He'd fucking kill his best friend if Quinn would find out about this through one of their sneaky neighbors. Well, if he'd get the chance before his girlfriend killed him.

"Oh come on, it already has to be ages ago! I don't think anyone would hold that against you!"

Oh yeah? He was pretty sure his girlfriend wouldn't be all to happy to find out that he cheated on her, even if it was 50 years ago.

"Didn't you fuck, like, every chick in your school anyway?" _No. Just the hot ones. _

"I already told you I don't wanna talk about it, man! Don't you fucking get it?" Puck growled. How could he act normally around Rachel when he got reminded of Kurt and Blaine's wedding and what happened every goddamn minute? Thinking about Rachel being naked while you're talking to her doesn't really help the conversation. In fact, it makes it fucking hard to concentrate on anything but the way her fingers curled in his hair and the way she breathed his name in his ear as she... _See? This happens every fucking time!_

"Alright alright. Then don't tell me anything. But I tell you now, whatever your problem might be, you'll regret it if you don't clear up everything."

* * *

The point of going to a barbecue party was _eating meat_. So since Rachel was a vegetarian, that was canceled. She wasn't even sure why she had agreed to come anyway, but it wasn't because she loved the smell of meat and smoke blowing into her face. If she had known she'd end up sitting between Cedric and a bubbly, blonde girl named Katie, who talked about a drummer of some kind of latin-american band she had never heard of, she maybe would have thought about her answer twice. Now though, Katie was going on and on about how hot and talented and whatever his guy was and Rachel had already thought about stuffing the yellow napkin in front of her into the blondes mouth just to shut her up. Sadly, she was one of Quinn's best friends and she was sure her former class mate wouldn't appreciate it that much.

"And then he threw his sweaty towel in the crowd and I caught it!" Katie squealed.

"Wasn't that, like, super unsanitary and smelly?" Cedric asked, showing off his doctor gene. He was clearly just as irritated by the other girl as Rachel.

"It was the sweetest scent I've ever smelled!" She gushed and took another bite of her fried sausage. Rachel could smell it everywhere and she wasn't amused! Normally, she didn't judge people who ate meat. Hell, her parents did it, Noah did it, multiple of her friends did it, even Cedric boyfriend ate meat every week. But she still wasn't too happy about standing next to someone who ate meat and then blew the smell in her face.

"Huh... maybe I should throw a wet towel full of my sweat in your face too, honey!" Cedric joked and poked her into the ribs.

"Oh don't you dare!" She giggled. Katie looked at them for a second before excusing herself from the table.

Finally. "Finally!" She sighed and leaned her head against Cedric's shoulder. He laughed softly and looked down at her.

"So, were you ever _that_ in love with a celebrity?" Cedric asked, quirking an eyebrow.

"Oh please, that guy wasn't even a celebrity. Or have you ever heard of 'Las Encurtidos'?" She huffed. Her spanish was rather bad since Mr. Schuester was, well, a horrible teacher. At least in that subject. But Rachel was pretty sure that encurtidos were something to eat.

"That didn't answer my question." He said knowingly and poked her into the ribs. Good thing she was so ticklish.

"Okay okay, stop it!" Rachel laughed and swatted his hand away. "Well... there were a few guys I, let's say, admired in a way that wasn't only based on their voices and artistic abilities. And I will admit that I had a tiny little crush on Dominic Cooper for a while after I saw him in Mamma Mia! But I never collected any sweaty towels and half empty water bottle and strands of hair..." She grimaced. (But seriously, there are people selling hair of stars on eBay?)

"Seriously? And you wouldn't even want it from Barbra?" Cedric asked, a little bit surprised. She idolized that woman, so some of her hair? Should be great.

"I'd rather see her perform live than have some dead skin cells of her in an airtight plastic bag at home!" So yeah, this Katie girl? Totally insane.

* * *

Puck was staring and it was getting creepy. No seriously, it was bad. But he couldn't stop looking at Rachel, the way she talked, laughed, took a sip of her juice and a fork full of salad number 2. He couldn't stop thinking about the conversation they had earlier. She forgave him for being an asshole (not for the first time, won't be the last) and it felt like back then, when they were just two silly teenagers from Ohio who hung out a lot and enjoyed each others company. It was surprising how fast they could fall back into old habits, just talking and laughing. There still was that little bit rest of awkwardness, but they both decided to ignore it. Right now though, she was sitting next to that wimp she called her boyfriend on a little wooden bench and he was staring at her, thinking about her in more than one inappropriate situation, while his own girlfriends hand rubbed over his tight. So yeah, he was a total creep!

"It's already getting darker, Puck. Should we start the campfire?" Quinn asked, pulling him out of his thought. She looked at him with those huge excited eyes and he had to smile. Since they moved into this house a year ago, she wanted to try out the little campfire spot in their garden. (One of the main reasons she had agreed to rent this house even though _their bedroom was too small_ and _the living room wasn't bright enough_.)

"Yeah, I'll do it." He kissed the top of her head and stood up.

As he let his eyes wander around the garden, he realized something. Rachel and Cedric were sitting next to the woodpile. Well, fuck. No more staring from afar then. As he went up to them, he saw that Rachel had her legs crossed with her shoes lying on the grass in front of her. And damn, this girl had _legs_...

"Enjoying the party?" He asked casually, stopping in front of them.

"Yeah, sure. The steak was awesome and your garden is really nice!" Douchy face said. Alright maybe he should stop calling that guy names in his head, but he couldn't help it. Who still talked like that? All polite and uptight. Dude wasn't likable at all, alone for the fact that he was a fan of the Yankees. God, Puck _hated_ the Yankees!

"Hope the variety of salads was enough for you?" He looked at Rachel, just ignoring Cedric's comment. (See, he called him by his real name. Making progress!)

"I only tried two, but those were great!" Rachel laughed and smiled at him. God, her lips were just so... _campfire_! He had to start the campfire!

"Well at least it was worth it then!" He shrugged and grabbed some pieces of wood, piling them up in his arms.

"Do you need help?" Weirdo- um, Cedric asked. At first, Puck wanted to decline. He didn't need any help of someone who probably couldn't even carry half of the weight he could. (He may exaggerated a little bit, shut up.) But then he thought about it. When the dude helped him, he wouldn't be able to sit next to Rachel and whisper cheesy love poems into her ear and Puck wouldn't have to look at them and feel like a creep. Basically a win-win situation. Well, just for him. Whatever.

"Sure." He answered, faking a smile. "Just carry some wood to the campfire!"

* * *

Watching two hot guys carry wood around the garden while drinking sparkling wine and enjoying the setting sun? Rachel's life is hard. The only way this could get any better was when all of the other people would disappear and the guys would take their shirts off. But maybe it would also just get weird then... it most definitely would get really weird then! _What the hell was she even thinking about?_

"Watching other people work is fun, huh?" Cedric laughed as he came back to pick up another piece of wood.

"I mean, I would offer my help, but you guys are managing this pretty well on your own!" She grinned back and took a sip from her glass just as Puck joined them again.

"I think that should be enough for now." He said, wiping some sweat of his forehead with the back of his hand. Just a few years ago she wouldn't have thought anything of it, or maybe she even would've considered it kinda gross, but over the years she discovered that a man in a thin layer of sweat can be pretty appealing, if not even really sexy. (Especially if she was the reason for it.) Weirdly, Noah had been the first guy who's sweat she didn't mind in any kind of way. Even when she was dating Finn and calling him the love of her life, she always made him shower after football training before he could touch her. It never had been like this with Noah though. It never really mattered.

"You know, you could get some matches from the kitchen if you're that bored." Puck suggested with a smirk. He knew she wasn't bored, but he also knew she was way to polite to decline.

"Oh, of course. Thank you for pulling me out of my misery, Noah!" Rachel answered ironically, but with a dead serious look on her face which made him laugh even more. _God, his laugh..._

"You're welcome, Rach." Puck answered sweetly. Every time he called her that, a weird feeling shot trough her stomach and she wasn't sure if she loved or hated it. "They should be in the fourth drawer from the right, if I'm not mistaken. Or well, if Quinn didn't rearrange everything out of pure boredom! Chick has some serious problems." She hadn't talked to Noah that much yet, but Rachel was pretty sure he already said something bad about Quinn more than 3 times. So she wondered if anything was going on between them, if they had problems. Or was he just being himself? But Rachel didn't really feel like she was in any place to ask, so she just smiled and got up.

"Well then, I'll start my long journey into the kitchen. Wish me luck!"

* * *

**I'm not really happy with this chapter, but meeh. Didn't want to make you wait any longer.  
The next chapter should be up sooner since it's almost done. And I think we have enough of a build-up now, so things should get interesting soon!  
****Also, I'm done with my exams and have holidays now, HA!  
****So yeah, let me know what you think & I'll see you soon!**


	7. You drive me crazy

**A/N: Hi, it's me again. Did a lot of writing these last few days so I'm already at day 5... I kinda feel like I write everything way too detailed. Is that bad? This story is also getting way too long! I wanted it to be like 30.000 words, but we're not even half way through yet and I wrote more than 25k. But I guess you don't mind anyway? Whatever, gonna let you read this now. So, enjoy!**

* * *

Rachel had to admit that, even though their kitchen was really girly and she still couldn't believe Noah ever agreed to buy this, it was really nice! Loads of cupboards, drawers and shelves, a big oven, a cute, little microwave... everything a woman could ask for. Or well, a cook, since she hoped Noah still went after his little, secret hobby and stood in front of the oven himself from time to time.

So,_ the fourth drawer from the right..._ Rachel walked along the kitchen unit, stopping in front of the fourth cabinet. It had cute, little gold handles. (Again, what the hell Noah?) When she opened the top drawer though, she was surprised by what she saw. Normally people kept knives, scissors or just random cooking utensils in their kitchen drawers, but the first thing she saw was a shiny, little magazine, made of expensive paper with bright colors. On the cover was a pretty blonde girl. That alone wouldn't have been special in any kind of way, except for the fact that she was wearing a long, white, puffy dress. When Rachel realized what kind of magazine she was staring at, her hands already reached for it. She probably should have listened to her head that told her to just close the drawer and walk away as if nothing ever happened, but no, she had to know. And she was right. It was a wedding magazine! There were small, colorful page markers sticked to a few pages, so Rachel opened a various page in the middle with a blue one. _How to take the perfect wedding photos_, was written in a curved font in the middle of the page. Wedding photos? For what wedding?

Oh my god. Of course.

She was in Quinn and Puck's house. In their kitchen. They were together since 3 years and knew each other for more than 8, it was only logically that the next step after moving in together would be making everything official - and marry! Rachel felt something twist in her stomach and it wasn't out of happiness. She felt sick. For a second she though she might had to puke, but she snapped the magazine closed, stuffed it back into the white drawer and slammed it shut with a loud bang. She didn't have the right to snoop around her friends personal things. (Even though they kinda had sent her here to do so, but that was beside the point.)

There was a wedding magazine in the kitchen drawer. In the kitchen of Puck and Quinn._ Puck and Quinn would get married._ And the only thing that was worse than that was the way she felt about it! She should be happy that her two high school friends were still together after all this time and wanted to stay together forever! But instead of feeling happiness, there was just this huge, black hole in her heart that swallowed all of her other feelings, leaving her totally numb. This was the first time she really thought it had been a horrible idea to come back to Ohio and none of the great moments with her dads or Cedric could push that thought away. She felt like she couldn't breath and knew she had to get out of this kitchen, out of this house, as soon as possible. She already wanted to run out the front door and lock herself in her bedroom, but then she stopped. Damn, _Cedric_.

* * *

Okay, so maybe he didn't give the guy enough credit. Cedric wasn't all that bad if you actually tried to talk to him. And listened. He liked the Rolling Stones and surprisingly owned a really expensive guitar Puck could only dream of. Of course dude couldn't play the way he could, but still. It was cool. Maybe he shouldn't just assume that every guy Rachel dated was an asshole. Or maybe he should stop being one himself. But when Rachel came back into the garden and Cedric was checking her out, all of the newfound sympathy rushed away and he hated him again. (No, he didn't see the connection at all.)

"Did you take a nap, Twinkle? We finished ages ago." Cedric said as she stopped in front of them. Rachel smiled at him, or well, it wasn't one of her natural smiles that made you smile too. It seemed forced and strained and just stayed on her lips for a few seconds. When she didn't answer her boyfriends question, Puck frowned. Rachel always took every possibility to talk!

"Did you find the matches?" Puck asked.

"Uhh no, I didn't. Sorry." Rachel said, not looking at him for longer than a split second.

"Huh... well, I'll just ask Quinn then. She probably sorted everything out without me knowing!" Puck answered, trying to catch her eyes. Something wasn't right with her, she didn't act normal.

"You do that." She nodded, toying around with the gold bracelet on her right hand. She always did that when she was nervous, toying around with a piece of jewelry or clothes or just her fingers. For him, it had been one of her _good_ bad habits because this way, he always knew when something was going on in her head but she didn't know how to approach the topic. Then he had asked her what the hell her problem was and had she told him something totally ridiculous, most of the time. Like when she had asked him if he wanted to attend prom with her because, like, seriously? Who else would he have gone with? But why was she nervous now? What happened in the last 5 minutes that made her this weird and distant?

"I'll get something to drink!" She suddenly said, spinning on her heel.

"Wait, I'll come with you." Donkey said and suddenly both of them were gone.

Nice. Now Rachel and douchy face left him standing here with a million questions in his head. What the fuck was going on with her?

* * *

Rachel seriously regretted ever going into that kitchen. She wasn't supposed to see that, but now that she did she couldn't stop thinking about it. Were they already planning? Did they wear rings? She knew Noah didn't, she would've seen that (since she had been checking him out since the first time she saw him again). But did Quinn wear a ring? She looked over to where the blonde was standing, talking to some of her friends, but she couldn't see a ring on her finger. Maybe she didn't wear it because she didn't want it to get dirty? Or maybe she didn't even have one yet. Noah always had been pretty spontaneous, so it was possible he just asked her to marry him while they were washing the dishes. Or having sex. (Nope_, don't think about Noah Puckerman naked, Rachel!_)

"Rachel?" Cedric laughed, trying to get her attention. "Are you alright?" He asked, stroking her arm softly with his fingers.

"Yeah I just- um... sorry. What were you saying?"

* * *

Puck loved campfires. It reminded him of his childhood, when he and Finn would go camping with Liam, their middle school friend, and his dad. Mr. Carson was the coolest dad Puck had ever met! He took his son camping and fishing, drove with him to baseball games and came to cheer on his son for his own football games at school. Dude was everything Puck had always wanted, so it was save to say he was a bit jealous of Liam. Then, one summer, Liam's dad had asked him and Finn if they wanted join them on a camping trip and since neither of them ever went camping, other than that one, failed night in the Hudson's garden, they agreed. And a little tradition was born that lasted over 4 years and many fantastic camping trips. A few weeks before High School started, Liam and his parents moved to Chicago because his dad got a kick-ass job offer and over were their little camping trips. At least until they were old enough to go by themselves. So now, sitting in front of a fire, watching the orange flames dancing around and feeling the heat on his skin was just perfect.

"This is amazing. Just like I had imagined!" Quinn sighed, leaning her head against Puck's shoulder. He nodded, looking around the half empty garden. Some of their friend had already left, but most of the others where all sitting around the campfire. Including Rachel and donkey face.

"Remember the last time we made a camp fire?" Quinn said and got up to take a marshmallow out of the plastic cup standing on the ground before handing it to him. He put the marshmallow on a stick for her and held it in the fire, twisting it until it had a nice golden brown color.

"Yeah. It was in the last weeks of our Senior Year. Finn burned his pants when he accidentally stepped into the fire!" He laughed. Senior Year might have been his favorite out of every school year. The fact that this was when he and Rachel grew closer and hung out every other day might be a reason for that, too.

"Oh my god, you're right! That feels like ages ago..." Quinn said and took the marshmallow from him. "You remember when Rachel's tent broke down in the middle of the night because Sam forgot one tent herring? And she had to crawl into your tent!" His girlfriend laughed. Yeah, that. Another great memory from his last year of school... He looked at Rachel and to his surprise, she was looking at him too. She smiled when he caught her eyes and he couldn't help but smile back. Yeah, that night really brought back old memories...

* * *

Crack.

_Rachel's head shot up immediately as she blinked, trying to rub the sleep out of her eyes. What the... She tried to sit up, but something was holding her down. It was her tent, lying on top of her like a bed cover. Except she wasn't in bed, but in the woods and it wasn't a soft, pink blanket, but her freaking tent lying on top of her! _

Great!

_After a moment of pure panic, she decided to get out of this stupid tent first. Rachel found the zipper and slowly pulled it open. As she crawled out into the dark, a cold breeze of air crept down her back. She looked around and listened if anyone had woken up because of the _little_ accident. But there was nothing. Nothing but the sounds of the forest at night, with all the branches creaking, leaves rustling and owls chattering in a distance. It sent chills down her spine. Normally, Rachel wasn't afraid of the dark. She wasn't afraid of a lot of things. But how many horror movies did start like this? A lonely girl, walking around the forest in the middle of the night... As another gust of wind made her shudder, she knew she had to do something instead of just standing around. Sure, she could try to build up her tent again, but it was so dark out here and she didn't even know how to do stuff like that (The boys had done all the work while the girls collected some wood for the camp fire). So she carefully went around her tent and tried to not step on anything while she searched after another specific tent in the darkness._

_She was lucky that his tent was right next to a big, old tree, otherwise she probably wouldn't have found it that fast. Rachel pulled open the zipper and slipped trough the whole. He was lying with his head on the other side of her, so she sat down next to his legs._

_"Noah." She whispered, trying not to wake up anyone except of him. When he didn't response she poked his legs and tried again. "Noah!"_

_"Mhhh?" He groaned, turning in his dark green sleeping back._

_"Noah, wake up!" Rachel mumbled, shaking his lower leg._

_"Rachel?" Puck rubbed his eyes with his fists like a little boy in the morning and sat up. "What are you doing here?" Puck said sleepy and yawned. He looked kinda cute like this, just barely awake and still trying to wake up his brain. (He looked cute in a lot of situations.)_

_"I'm really sorry to wake you up, but my tent collapsed." Rach whispered._

_"What? How the fuck did that happen? Are you okay?" He asked, now a lot more awake than a few seconds ago. He touched her arm with his fingers, softly sliding them down to her wrist and rubbing small circles over her pulse point with his thumb. Probably his way of testing if she had any serious wounds._

_"Yes, I'm fine. I just can't sleep in there anymore!" She answered softly. Rachel loved when he was like this. All cute and protective. _

_"C'mere." He said, unzipping his sleeping bag and sliding over a few centimeters. Rachel hesitated._

_"Are you sure, Noah? I mean, I can just sleep on the ground, it isn't that cold. I don't want to take away your space."_

_"Oh shut it and move your hot little piece of ass over here. I'm not gonna let you sleep on the fucking ground, Rach!" He huffed and pulled her to him by her wrist._

_"Vulgar as ever, even in the middle of the night!" Rachel mumbled as she lay down next to him, instantly feeling a wave of heat wrapping around her small frame. She sighed softly as she zipped the sleeping back again and sunk deeper into it. It always surprised her that, even though it was so hot during summer days in Ohio, it could get really cold in the nights. Her breathe hitched as she suddenly felt a warm hand sliding around her stomach to pull her closer._

_"Noah..." She whispered flustered._

_"You're letting in all the cold air." He muffled into her hair as he pressed Rachel against his broad chest. Right, like this would explain why his fingers were slipping beneath the hem of her shirt, too?!_

_"Noah what-"_

_"Shhh. Get some sleep, babe." He shushed her and let his soft fingertips linger just above her belly button. (Soft thanks to the cocoa butter hand cream she got him a few weeks ago, HA!) _

_"Well I want to, but I can't when you're... doing this." Rachel was glad that it was so dark. Otherwise he would've seen the blush creeping on her face and he really didn't need another ego boost. _

_"'m driving you crazy, huh?" Noah breathed into her ear in a husky voice. Rachel really tried to keep her breathing even, not wanting him to realize what effect he had on her, but her heart was pounding so loud in her chest she was sure even someone standing 10 meters away would be able to hear it. _

_"Don't flatter yourself, Noah." Rachel answered in a trembling voice, (she really had to work on that with her vocal coach some more!) before taking a deep breath and placing her hand on top of his to keep him from moving it any higher. Maybe also from removing it completely, she wasn't so sure._

_"Sure, babe." Noah yawned, already falling back asleep. She could feel the warmth of his hand against her skin and Rachel had to admit that this was actually quite nice. She felt save and secure in Noah's arms. Rachel tried to remember when the last time was that she had slept next to someone else this close, but before she could find an answer she felt how her eyelids grew heavier and heavier until she suddenly slipped into oblivion. _

_And it was safe to say that she slept ten times better here than she had in her own, lonely tent. _

* * *

**And that was part 7! What do you think? Liked the flashback?  
I know a lot of you want Puck and Rachel to finally get together, make cute babies and live happily ever after, but don't forget that they haven't seen each other in two years! Rachel is with Cedric for that long and Puck with Quinn for even longer, so it would be kinda dumb to say they don't love their partners at all. But don't worry, it's still a Puckleberry story, so something will happen very, very soon!  
**


	8. Windows to your soul

**A/N: Why is it so freaking hot? Seriously, I don't even wanna go outside because I'm afraid I'll evaporate. But, oh well, that gives me more time sitting in my cool room and writing. Again, thanks for the great feedback! I can't even tell you how much all of the support really means to me! And now, enjoy! **

* * *

"The next morning when Finn saw Rachel's shattered tent, he woke up everyone by shouting that she had been kidnaped in the night!" Puck laughed. His former best friend had pulled everyone out of their tents to start a search party, just to stare at them with wide eyes when he opened Puck's tent and saw them lying together in one sleeping back, snuggled up to each other. Everyone had been mad at him for the rest of the day for waking them up at 6 am.

He caught Rachel's eyes and he knew she was thinking about it too. The night in that tent. Nothing had happened between them, not really. But maybe it had meant even more because of that. But suddenly Rachel broke their eye contact and silently said something to Dr. Phill. Puck couldn't hear what she said, but then Cedric nodded and moved a bit to the right so Rachel could get up and... go? Where was she going? And why?

* * *

_Was he doing this on purpose?_, Rachel asked herself as she stomped into the house. Puck had been shooting her these weird glances the whole night and even though she knew better, she couldn't stop looking at him too. (She should sue his parents for making such an attractive child!) So when Quinn brought up the time the New Directions when camping at the end of their senior year, she couldn't help but smile at the memories. Sure, waking up with the tent ceiling in your face wasn't that nice, but the way Noah had taken care of her, the way he had pulled her against his chest? If she was honest, she still thought about it from time to time. Even after all these years.

But then it hit her: he was getting married! Puck and Quinn would marry and there were already wedding magazines in their kitchen. She shouldn't think about him this way. She should think about her boyfriend like this! Because she had a boyfriend, which she tend to forget from time to time. So she had to get away from him, from all of this, right this instant.

And now she was hiding away in their bathroom... not the best way to get away from someone, hiding in their house. There was no centimeter that didn't scream _Noah Puckerman_, since all of his things were in here too. His toothbrush was in the black cup on the sink. (She knew the green one was his. He used green toothbrushes since he was about 12.) His after shave was standing on the washing machine. (The one she loved so much.) His towel was hanging over the bathtub. (She had to stop herself from doing something totally creepy like sniffing on it.) But at least there was no picture or life-size statue of him standing in here, so that was that.

But now that Rachel was all alone, she had nothing left but her thoughts, spinning and turning in her head. What was it with Noah that he still meant so much to her after all this time? Why was she thinking about him that way? She had a boyfriend, an amazing, cute, sensible boyfriend who loved her. And she loved him too, she was sure of it. But there was something about the way Noah looked at her, the way he smiled and talked, that just made her totally crazy! Rachel couldn't deny that she still was attracted to him, he basically looked like some greek god! (Except, not as old. And without white hair.) And she had been attracted to other guys since she was with Cedric as well, it wasn't something unusual or inappropriate. She could look, as long as she didn't do anything. But that was the problem. She wanted to do something with Noah! Since she had seen him the first night at that awkward dinner, she felt this urgent need to rip his shirt open and throw him on her bed... or well, at first she wanted to kiss him, but you know. Always planning ahead.

And this was completely new to her. She never wanted to have sex or something stupid like that with any other guy than her boyfriend. And it was freaking her out so much that she was hiding in a _fucking_ bathroom now!

Then again, Noah was different from other all these other boys. He always had been. And maybe the fact that they had a special history together made her think like that. They used to be best friends and she knew exactly what he could do to her body. Maybe that was the reason for her weird feelings. Rachel looked into the mirror and smoothed her hair with her fingers. She would just go outside again and act like she wasn't totally freaked out by all the feelings she had for him. And then she'd go home, with her _boyfriend_, and enjoy the last few days before flying back to New York. Yes, that's exactly what's going to happen, she thought and stepped out of the bathroom. She turned around the corner on her way outside, as she suddenly crashed into another body.

"Oh god I'm so sorry!" She said before even looking up. When she did though, she saw no other than Noah Puckerman, looking deeply into her eyes. He had once asked her what she liked best about his body and she had answered his eyes.

_"My eyes? I ask you about your favorite body part of me and you say my eyes? Babe, I have a spectacular six-pack and monster guns!"_

_"Your arms are lovely, Noah. And so is everything else. I just- I don't know... Do you know the saying 'Your eyes are the windows to your soul'? It's like that with you. Sometimes you're acting like a complete jerk, but when I look into your eyes, I can see what you're really thinking."_

She still loved his eyes.

"Don't worry, runner." Puck said and smiled down at her. It was now that she realized one of his hands was on her hip, steadying her because of their collision. She sucked in a deep breath and pulled away by taking a step back. She kind of missed they feeling of him standing so close to her.

"Well then... I'll just go back into the garden." She said, forcing a smile and tried to walk past him, but he caught her wrist and made her spin around.

"Rach... are you okay?" He asked, sounding almost worried. His eyes were as soft as his fingers on her skin and she had to stop herself from kissing him right there and then. He always had been so protective over her, always realized when something was up. So she shouldn't be as surprised that he noticed it now, too. She was, though. That he was still able to read her so well, after all these months.

"Yeah, o-of course I am. Why- why wouldn't I be?" She stammered, trying to avoid his eyes. But they were just so gorgeous and _god_.

Puck studied her for a few seconds before sighing. "Why are you lying to me, Rachel?"

"I'm not lying to you!" Rachel blurted out, hating how high her voice sounded. _Take a deep breath and keep calm, Rachel._

"Yes, you are. Is something wrong with Cedric? Did he do anything?" Noah asked concerned, touching her arm just like he did the night in that tent. She knew this look in his eyes. She had seen it before. Whenever Finn or Jesse had broken her heart, he was right there. Sometimes next to her, sometimes across the room, but always with this look in his eyes. She never had thought much of it, until they kind of became best friends in their last year of school and she realized how much he actually cared.

"What? No. No, he didn't do anything wrong!" Rachel defended her boyfriend because it really wasn't Cedric who got her all worked up. It was him. But she couldn't tell him that now, could she?

"Then why are you so jumpy and moody? One second you're all happy, sitting at the camp fire and laughing, the next you're running into the house like the devil is haunting you himself!" He shouted, throwing his arms up. Rachel could see his eyes turning from soft and calm to frustrated and angry. She hated it when people were angry with her, she just couldn't handle it. Especially if it was him.

"I-I just had to use the toilette!" She stuttered, trying to find an excuse for her behavior. But there was none, he knew her too well to buy a cheap lie.

"You've been like this for days, Rachel. That's not you!" Puck nearly whined. He was frustrated with her, she got it. But '_That's not you_'? Now she was angry too.

"You don't know what's _like me_ anymore, Noah Puckerman! You have no idea what's going on in my live and you haven't for two years, since that damn wedding and don't you think you still know exactly what I am thinking cause you have no idea and I'm sick of your Mr-Know-it-all behavior!"

* * *

Puck just stared at her, his heart pounding in his chest twice as fast as usual. Now that it was so silent, he realized how loud they had been screaming at each other. Puck wondered if anyone had heard them, but he didn't really care right now. All he cared about was Rachel and how they could fix this. Her eyes went wide and she was just as shocked about what had just happened as he was.

"Um..." He cleared his throat and took a deep breath, trying to slow down his heart rate again.

Now it was out. Rachel had brought up the wedding and there was no going back. They had to talk about it. Sooner or later. And he kinda wanted to talk about it, wanted to tell her how sorry he was for fucking up their whole friendship. Not only for that, but it would be a good start.

"Maybe we should-"

"I have to go!" Rachel interrupted him quickly and before he could say anything else, she turned around, rushed down the hallway and the next second she was gone.

_Fuck_.

What did just happen? He just wanted to know if she was okay, bring some sense into everything, clear things between them. He wanted to tell her how he felt, that he was sorry. He just wanted her back as his friend. (Or you know, more, but that was kinda the problem.)

But instead he just made everything worse. Because that's what he always did: fuck everything up.

* * *

"Hey there, Twinkle." Cedric greeted her as she came back to the camp fire.

"Can we go?" She asked bluntly. The was no way she was staying here for another minute after what had just happened.

"Uh yeah, sure. Is everything alright?" He asked, showing any kind of concern for the first time this day.

"Yeah, I'm okay. Just really tired!" She offered and he didn't question it. Cedric knew that Rachel would tell him if something was up. Well, at least that's the way it used to be. Now Rachel wasn't so sure, but Cedric couldn't know that.

They got up and went over to Quinn who was sitting next to two other girls, laughing and drinking some pink liquid out of champagne glasses.

"Hey, Quinn. We'll leave now, but thank you for the wonderful evening and the dinner!" Cedric said as he bent down to her.

"What? Already?" The blonde asked with a little pout as she got up. She obviously was at least a little bit drunk.

"Yeah. Rachel is really tired, so we'll just head home! But again, thanks for the invitation!" Rachel felt guilty about lying. Cedric trusted her completely and she had just lied into his face. But sometimes you were better off with a good lie than telling the truth. (She felt even more guilty about thinking that.)

"Of course, you're always welcome here! And thanks for coming!" She smiled and hugged both, Rachel and Cedric. "I'll walk you to the door!"

"Oh don't worry, we'll find out." Rachel interrupted. She just had to get out of this house as soon as possible and Quinn walking them to the door would slow everything down.

"Oh okay. Well then, come home safe!"

"We will." Cedric smiled and followed Rachel who was already half way through the garden.

* * *

"Where have you been?" Quinn slurred as Puck approached her and Tweedle Dee and Tweedle Dum. (Seriously, he couldn't stand any of her friends so he didn't even bother learning their names. They were all conceited, arrogant, snooty bitches with no sense of humor. Maybe they just didn't really get his jokes, since he was secretly or not-so-secretly insulting them the whole time, but whatever. That was the same thing.)

"I was in the kitchen, cleaning up." He lied. Well, half of it was true. He did clean up. One glass. By putting it in the washing machine. Duh.

"Puck... I think we should throw out everyone and go to the bedroom." Quinn whispered into his ear, giving him _that_ look. He knew what she meant. She was drunk and horny and wanted to get laid. Normally he would have been thrilled. Quinn wasn't the prude she used to be in High School anymore, but she wasn't a sex shark either. So yeah, their sex life? Not as exciting as he'd like it to be. But when Quinn loosened up a bit, shit could get crazy. You know how they always say that girls who were a little bit insane were a freak in bed? Yeah, totally true. He had experienced it more than once. Quinn, Santana, Brittany, that married, red-haired scientologist with the tongue piercing. Rachel. Shit, _Rachel_.

"Puck?" Quinn pulled him out of his thoughts.

"Yeah yeah. Tell Laurel and Hardy to get out, I'll take care of the rest." He said. Quinn just laughed - another sign for her drunkenness, she normally would have hissed at him for calling her friends names - and got up.

"Alright. But hurry, I really wanna go the bed!" She shot him a slinky look and turned back to her friends.

* * *

Half an hour later, when everyone was gone and the fire was blown out, Puck walked back into the house, putting the last beer bottles from their porch on the kitchen counter. There was so much trash lying around, Quinn would go crazy the next morning when she got up.

"Puck, are you coming? I'm lying in our bed in only my underwear and I'm getting cold." Quinn called from the bedroom.

"Yeah, I'm coming." Puck shouted back and leaned against the cooking island. What the hell was he waiting for? There was his hot, half naked girlfriend lying on his bed, waiting for him to undress her and make her scream his name. So why wasn't he moving and getting his ass up there as fast as he could? _Goddamn, Puckerman, get your shit together and stop being such a pussy!_

Quinn was wearing light blue underwear (his favorite) and smiling at him seductively.

"Finally. I nearly wanted to start on my own." Lie, she wasn't really into touching herself, he had already tried. Rachel on the other hand... alright, no! He couldn't think about her right now. Shit.

"Come here." She said in a husky voice, patting on the empty bed next to her. He pulled his shirt over his head and slipped out of his jeans, leaving only his black boxers on. He went over to the bed and lay down next to Quinn.

"I missed you. We didn't spent much time together today!" She said.

"Yeah, sorry..." He said, brushing a few blond strands out of her face. Quinn wrapped her arm around his neck and pulled him closer. As their lips met, Puck could taste the alcohol on her, a mix out of some girly fruit punch and sparkling wine. Quinn's lip gloss tasted kinda flowery, maybe it were roses, Puck had no idea about flowers. Rachel always had used these fruity lip balms. Strawberry, coconut, passion fruit. His favorite had been the one with cherry flavor because it gave her lips this light red color and tasted really fucking natural. And he liked cherries. Quinn let her tongue run along the seam of his lips and suddenly everything about this felt wrong. He was thinking about another girls lip gloss while his girlfriend was kissing him! Puck pulled away and looked Quinn into the eyes. (He was kind of disappointed they weren't big and brown. Again, fuck!)

"What?" She asked confused, trying to pull him closer again.

"I just... I don't wanna use you in a situation like this. You've been drinking and it wouldn't be right!" Worst lie ever. They've had sex enough time under the influence of alcohol and she wasn't even that drunk. Hell, their first time was basically him getting her drunk so she'd calm down and let him do his thing. (And we all know how well that turned out.) He wondered if she would realize his lie and call him out on it, but she just smiled.

"Oh Puck, that's so sweet! But I want this, I'm sure of it." She let her hand slide down his chest, but he caught her wrist before she could really touch him, you know, _there_. Because he was pretty sure that by now there wouldn't be a picture of his girlfriend in his mind when he closed his eyes.

"I'll make it up tomorrow." He said and kissed her top of her head before switching of the lights. Puck knew she was probably pissed, but she was also way too tired to actually start an argument, so she let him turn her around and pull her against his chest.

And this was the first time Puck had ever turned down sex with his girlfriend.

_What the actual fuck?_

* * *

**Sooo this was part 8. What did you think? Let me know!  
Next-Up: Another long chapter and something you've been waiting for a long time! :P **


	9. Our Thing

**A/N: So... I wanted to update this yesterday, but then we suddenly didn't have any internet anymore and it took over a day to fix it. I wasn't amused. Like, it ****literally **happened 5 minutes before I wanted to post this chapter! But whatever, you can read it now. Another thing: the next chapters will probably take a few more days too and I know it sucks to wait long for a new chapter, but I think you'd rather have a good, long chapter than a short, weird one right? So yeah, that's it. Enjoy! 

* * *

"Good morning, Kitten. Did you sleep well?" Her dad asked as she entered the kitchen in the morning.

"Yes, I did. I'm slowly getting used to the silence at night!" Hiram smiled at his daughter and put a cup of hot, steaming coffee in front of her.

"Thank you!" She said softly and kissed his cheek. "Where are Cedric and daddy?"

"They are outside, doing some gardening." Her father grimaced. Hiram definitely didn't enjoy digging in the dirt. Cutting the lawn? Maybe. But planting seeds in the soil? Nope, to dirty.

"Do you have any other plans for the day?" She asked, taking a sip of her coffee. Rachel thought it was funny how different a coffee could taste when someone else made it. Sometimes better, sometimes worse, but always different. Back in her senior year, she always made Noah make the coffee for them because of that. His coffee had just tasted so much better than hers, even though they'd been using the same coffee machine. (Maybe there also had been another reason for that.)

"Your daddy and I will drive to an auction in Fort Wayne in an hour. There will be some great, old records! You wanna join us, bunny?"

Rachel thought about it for a second, but then shook her head. "No, thanks. We're just going to stay in and have a lazy day."

"You do that, Kitten!" He father kissed the top of her head, something he did since she was little. "But don't do _it_ anywhere but your room!" He warned, only half-joking.

"Papa..." Rachel blushed, looking away. Sometimes she hated that her parents were so open.

"No, no, it's alright, sweety. You're a grown, beautiful woman and should have your fun. Just don't do it anywhere that could get unpleasant for me and your daddy. I know you kids want to try a lot these days, but you can wait with that until you're at your own apartment again, alright?"

"Oh my god, yes papa. I got it. Can we talk about something else now?" Rachel groaned, hiding her head in her hands.

"This house is open to any topic you want to talk about and having a healthy sexual relationship is nothing to be ashamed of, bunny." Her father explained objectively. She couldn't believe he talked to her about her sex life and then called her bunny.

"I know, I know. God, please, just...!"

"Okay okay, I'll stop." He laughed, patting her cheek softly. "Come on, go outside and tell you're daddy to stop digging in the dirk and get ready! I won't drive over an hour, sitting next to a dirty, sweaty mess! At least not in this context."

"_Papa_!"

* * *

"LeRoy, hurry up! I need the Beatles 'Please Please Me' record and if someone will snatch it from under my nose, I won't accompany you on your Sunday-Jazz any longer!" Her dad threatened as he stood next to the car, ready to drive.

"Why do you always have to be so tempestuous, Hiram? We have two hours left and the drive won't take more than one and a half." Her other dad answered relaxed as he stepped outside, wearing his favorite shorts and the sunglasses Rachel had bought him for his last birthday.

Rachel and Cedric were standing next to the car, watching the scenario amused. She loved her dads with all of her heart, but sometimes they were just so hilarious she couldn't help but laugh.

"We'll better get going before your dad murders me, Starlet!" LeRoy whispered into her ear, making Rachel laugh.

"Yeah, you better. That would totally ruin our holidays!" She giggled and hugged her daddy tightly.

"You two have fun!" LeRoy smiled and patted Cedric's shoulder. Rachel was glad that they all got along so well. But then, it wasn't surprising. Cedric made people like him within a few seconds. (She could think of only one boy who didn't seem to like him all that much, but maybe it was just her imagination.)

"And use protection!" Hiram shouted from the other side of the car. He always knew how to embarrass Rachel and never let a single opportunity pass.

"Bye! Have fun." Rachel rolled her eyes and waved them goodbye as her dads got into the car and drove away. Urgh.

"Did your dads just give me the permission to have sex with you while they're gone?" Cedric laughed, holding the door open for her.

"Yeah... they are _horrible_." She sighed and went back inside, flopping down on the large sofa.

"Well I don't know about you, but I don't find the idea of having sex with you in an empty house that horrible." Cedric smirked and sat down next to her.

"Oh really?" Rachel raised her eyebrows and leaned closer. "Well I guess you'll have to convince me than!" She said and pressed her lips against his, straddling his lap. Cedric's hand grabbed her hips to pull her closer, but suddenly an image flashed through her mind. Noah's hand on her hip last night. Noah's eyes looking into hers. Noah saying her name. Noah. She broke away, breathless for another reason than the kiss she just started with her boyfriend.

"What?" He laughed and stoke some strands of hair out of her face.

"No... nothing, I was just..." She put her hands on his chest, tapping her fingers softly against his muscles. _Think, Rachel, think!_

"I think we should do something today. Always sitting in the house or having dinner somewhere is getting boring!" Rachel said, secretly thanking her dads for her spontaneity.

"Um sure... what do you want to do?" He asked, a little bit confused she just interrupted their making out session to talk.

"Weeee... could go swimming! The swimming bath is going to be really crowded today, but there is a great lake not far from here and it's so hot!" Rachel said excitedly.

"One problem: I don't have any swimming trunks with me."

"Oh you can have one from my dads, they won't mind! And don't worry, they're both very hygienic!" Rachel giggled. "Come one... please! For me!" She gave him her best puppy dog eyes, not stopping until he would agree.

"Okay okay. Stop pouting, I won't stand in the way!" Cedric laughed and pulled her in for another kiss.

"Yes!" She squealed and threw her hands around his neck. "You're the best!"

"I know, I know, Twinkle." He said smiling. "But don't you think we have some time left before we have to leave?" Cedric whispered into her ears and squeezed her hips. The picture of the other boy just wouldn't disappear. _Damn it._

"No I have to make sandwiches and snacks and search the cool bag and my bikini!" She stood up and was already halfway in the kitchen. "Oh and... I'll make it up to you." Rachel gave him a small smile and turned around again.

_Alright, why did she just think about Noah while making out with her boyfriend? She definitely didn't give him the permission to pop up in her mind whenever he wanted!_

* * *

Puck didn't make it up in the morning. But that wasn't a big problem since the alcohol had already left Quinn's body by then and she didn't feel the urgent need to rip off his clothes anymore. Neither did he. And it was freaking him the fuck out! Quinn was hot and pretty and his freaking girlfriend, he should want to have sex with her as much as possible. Especially since they both took two weeks of now. But instead of keeping her in their bed and making her come again and again, he got up before she was even awake and took a shower. When he walked down the hall towards the kitchen afterwards, he could already smell the freshly brewed coffee.

"Morning!" He said and took a cup from his top shelf. Yes, they had separated shelves! Don't even ask.

"Hey." She smiled and took a muffin out of a plastic bag before she bit into the fluffy, brown texture. Puck was seriously so glad that she was done with her cheerio diet that she stayed on for 2 years after high school ended! Girl's crazy.

"Do you have any plans for today?" She asked as he dropped onto a kitchen chair.

"Nope. Maybe I'll drop in on my mom later, just to check on her and Becca." Puck answered. That was honestly the only good thing about Lima: having his mom and sister so close. (Well, sometimes she drove him crazy with her visits and calls, but you know. She was still his mom and the most important person in his live. Maybe that's why he was always falling for the slightly insane girls.)

"We should go somewhere today! We never do things together anymore." Quinn said and sat down across from him, giving him her you-better-answer-this-right look.

"Sure. What do you wanna do?" Apparently that was the right answer.

"We could go swimming!" She smiled, showing of her perfectly white teeth.

"And lie next to shirking three-year olds who piss in the water? No offense, but that doesn't sound like a great plan."

"We can drive to the lake! It won't be as crowded and there are many trees to give us some shadow... come on, Puck! I bought a new bikini, don't you wanna see it?"

"What color?" He raised one brow.

"Yellow." Quinn grinned.

"Alright." He sighed. A day on the lake, it would be. Maybe this wasn't such a bad idea. He'd get to spend time with his girlfriend again and they could heat up their relationship. Hopefully.

* * *

The summers in Ohio were hot. Not just the nice kind of hot where you wear cute summer dresses and eat ice cream to cool down. No, it was the kind of hot you couldn't really escape because there wasn't a place that didn't burn your skin. So the only way not to die was jumping into water.  
Since her dads took the car earlier, they had to take the bikes. She hadn't sat on a bike in forever and her butt was hurting when they finally arrived at the little lake. Just like she had predicted, not a lot of people were here. A few children playing in the shallow water, some older people lying it the shadows, young men swimming laps in the lake.

"Let's head over there!" Rachel said and pointed to an empty place next to some bushes and trees. They sat down and got comfortable, spread the red and white picnic blanket, pulling out the towels.

"Is it that hot in New York too?" Cedric asked and wiped the sweat from his forehead.

"Well, there are a lot more shadows than here. And wind." She sighed and sat down on the blanket. "I'd die for a cold breeze of wind right now!" Rachel groaned and let her head fall back, closing her eyes.

Suddenly she felt a cold rush of air in her face and when she opened her eyes again, Cedric was fanning her air with a magazine she packed.

"Oh god, yes!" She moaned.

"You like that?" Cedric laughed, still wagging the glamour magazine in front of her face.

"This feels amazing..." Rachel replied, enjoying the cold air on her skin.

"It would be even better if you took off your clothes." Cedric advised.

"Mhhh... everything about this sounds so inappropriate!" Rachel giggled.

"Nah, it's only fair since you bailed on me earlier!" The blonde boy laughed and got to his knees in front of her. He grabbed the hem of her shirt, pulling it slowly up until Rachel raised her arms and he could take it off of her. Now she was only left in her white hot pants and a pink bikini top.

"Naughty, aren't we?" Rachel grinned and he bent down and took her face into his large hands, stroking softly over her cheek.

"Mhm..." He hummed as his lips touched hers. He started nipping at her bottom lip, pushing her down gently until she was laying on her back.

"Cedric..." She laughed against his lips. "Here are children!"

"I don't see them..." He mumbled. Cedric could be one of the most polite and charming guys Rachel had ever met, but he still was a boy. And maybe that was what she liked about him, the diversity of his personality. Maybe she liked it because it reminded her of someone else. Someone she tried really hard not to think about while she was making out with her boyfriend. She was pretty sure there were at least two people who wouldn't be happy with hearing who she was thinking about. Her boyfriend, of course, but also _his_ girlfriend. Quinn had been nothing but nice to her these last few days. She couldn't know that it was her boyfriend, no, _fiancée_, Rachel was thinking of 24/7. It just wasn't fair to her.

Speaking of.

"Rachel? Cedric?"

* * *

From now on, he wouldn't listen to anything coming out of Quinn's mouth anymore. _Ever_. Because seriously, first the fucking awkward dinner, then the barbecue party and now this? Everything her fucking idea!

He drove to the lake today to spent some time with his girlfriend and come a little closer to her again, since, ya know, his little (huge) man didn't really react to her lying naked on their bed and it's getting problematic. (At this point he was wondering how long it had been since he got his dick wet and shit, he can't even remember!)

But instead, he was watching a half-naked Rachel (!) making out with Dr. Douchebag on a freaking picnic blanket!

Fuck. His. Life.

"Hey! What are you doing here?" Quinn said excitedly as Cedric got up and smoothed his stupid blue shirt. Rachel was still sitting on the ground, combing her fingers through her hair. That pink bikini top was unreal, like... it looked amazing against her tanned skin and pressed her boobs up just right and she was just... oh fuck, he could feel his shorts tighten and this shit wasn't kosher!

"During such weather, there is no other way to cool down!" Cedric said with his dumb grin. Yeah, maybe he wouldn't get so hot when he'd stop making out with Rachel. _Fuck_.

"That's what we thought, too!" His girlfriend said and took his hand in hers, waiting for him to say something.

"Yeah, what she said." Puck nodded, faking a huge smile that probably looked ridiculous on his face. Whatever. This whole situation was ridiculous.

"Hey, you maybe wanna sit down next to us?" Monkey face asked and he already knew what Quinn would answer before she even opened her mouth.

"That would be lovely! Right, Puck?"

Hell no. "Marvelous." He grinned and leaned over to kiss the side of Quinn's head. Don't ask him why, the reason was totally stupid. As if Rachel would care that he... whatever. Stupid.

"Great!" Cedric said and looked down at Rachel.

"Yeah... great." She replied with a nod. Puck would have laughed at her way to obvious annoyed tone and the slightly grumpy look she was shooting her boyfriend. He would have, if it truly wasn't meant for him.

* * *

She was starting to think that fate was playing a prank on her. Seriously, she had been in Lima for 5 days and had seen Noah on 4 of them! When you think about the fact that he was the only person Rachel really tried to avoid, than it was quite strange. Lima wasn't a huge city like New York was, but how are the chances that Noah and Quinn decide to drive to the lake the same day she and Cedric do?

Apparently, very high!

So now she was sitting next to her boyfriend, who was talking to Quinn, who was sitting next to Puck, who was just as silent as she was. Funny, considering they had so much to talk about. But she didn't want to talk about it. Or with him. About anything. She didn't even want to see him right now because the more she saw him, the more she had to think about him and the more she had to think about him, the more she started to think about them. Him and her. And that just wasn't right.

But at the same time she wondered if he was thinking about it, too. He couldn't, right? He was getting married. This whole thing was probably just a one-sided crush she never had the chance to get over. Noah was just trying to be nice and friendly. _Friendly_, because he wanted to be her _friend_. And she was ruining it because of her damn feelings.

Rachel hated to be this foolish, pathetic girl she used to be in High School.

"You wanna get into the water for a bit?" Rachel asked Cedric sweetly. This was what they came for, right?

"Yeah, sure." He said and got up. "You wanna join us?" Her boyfriend asked Quinn and Puck, but the blonde just shook her head.

"I'll stay here to tan. Didn't have any time for it the last month and I'm already looking like a ghost!" Quinn laughed.

_Thank god. _

* * *

So, two things.

One: Rachel looked super hot in her pink bikini it hurt. No seriously, his pants were getting tighter and he was lying on his stomach to hide it because he couldn't really say seeing Quinn reading a book next to him was such a turn-on. (She probably would believe it since she was still pretty self-conscious, but you know, he didn't want to try.)

And the second thing: seeing Rachel and monkey laugh was making him angry. Really angry. Cedric was pulling Rachel under water and when she came to the water surface again, she started to splash water at her boyfriend. Douchy face laughed and held her wrists in his hand to stop her. When he pulled her closer she slung her arms around his neck and said something into his ear that made him laugh. Puck hadn't realized he clenched his fists until his knuckles started to hurt. This was so pathetic. He really wanted to look away, but Rachel was just... Rachel. Then they suddenly came out of the water and Rachel jogged (!) to her towel. Come one. _Was she trying to kill him with this shit? _

Of course she wasn't. She didn't know that she was driving him totally nuts. He was the pathetic one.

"You know, drowning wasn't on my To-Do list for the summer!" Rachel laughed and threw a water bottle into Cedric's hands. Even though she meant it as a joke, Puck was sure she had a summer To-Do list. That would be _so_ Rachel. He wondered for a second if he was on her To-Do list, but yeah. Definitely not. Maybe he would have been if Cedric didn't exist. But what would it change if she didn't have a boyfriend? He'd still be with Quinn. (Not that he cared before.) So no, it would change nothing.

(Or everything.)

"I wouldn't let you drown! I mean, you'll show me the way home to your dads. Without you I'd be lost." Cedric laughed as he sat down on his towel. Quinn was still reading her book, not even looking up. Probably she was about to find out how the couple will name their child. (Her taste in books was horrible, but she didn't get that he couldn't care less about them and kept telling him what was happening.)

"Oh so you're just using me to have a place to sleep and eat!" Rachel asked joking. If Puck was being honest, this wouldn't be all that bad. Cedric would turn out to be an asshole and Rachel would kick him out. Puck didn't have to see his stupid face anymore and everyone would be happy. Except, you know... _Rachel_. She'd be heartbroken. And probably cry for days. And wouldn't be able to do shit about it. Yeah, no, forget it.

"Yeah, cause Lima is the best place on earth to spent my holidays!" Cedric answered and laid down on his towel. Puck was watching everything unnoticed while he acted like he was sleeping. Again, how pathetic!

"I'll be right back! Have to use the toilets!" Rachel suddenly said and walked away. This was the first time she wasn't with her boyfriend since their little encounter. Huh. He'd be pretty stupid to let that opportunity slide, right?

* * *

Public toilets were gross. Most of the time they were dirty and didn't even have toilet paper. But what could you expect from free toilets? At least she didn't have to pee in the lake, which was even most disgusting than cleaning the toilet bowl for 5 minutes. She actually didn't have to be that thorough since she wouldn't touch the toilet seat in any kind of way (like, ew), but maybe she just didn't want to go back to the others. Every time she looked at Cedric she felt kind of guilty. She didn't even have anything to feel guilty about, since he knew about her past with Noah (not everything, but he didn't have to) and nothing had happened between them yet. Yet! The fact that Rachel was even thinking about something might happening in the future was a reason to feel guilty. Thing was, she just couldn't stop thinking about him and the fact that he was everywhere didn't make it any easier. 7 minutes after she had left Cedric, she knew she had to get back or he'd ask questions. He may had been oblivious to her affection towards Noah, but he wasn't stupid.

So she washed her hands, twice, just to be sure and opened the door. Just as she turned around the corner of the little, white toilette house, she crashed into another body. This time, she knew exactly who it was without looking up. She had seen this chest too many times to forget it.

"I- sorry..." She could smell his after shave and feel his hand on her arm and Rachel was pretty sure her heart just skipped a beat.

"Is this gonna be our thing now?" He asked with a smile on his lips when she finally looked up.

"I hope not." Rachel took a deep breath, trying to control her heart rate again. This wasn't good. This wasn't good at all. He couldn't stand this close to her again. She knew, this time she wouldn't be able to control herself.

"I wouldn't really mind." He said and let his fingers slide down from her upper arm to her wrist. "It's the only way I get you to talk to me."

"That's not... I- I mean..." She stuttered, trying to pull away. But when she took a step back, he took one forward, never leaving her eyes with his.

"You're searching for an excuse." Puck stated, letting go of her hand.

"I am not!" She yelled, way to fast, which made Puck smirk. "I'm just... I'm trying to... to..." Trying to what? Rachel didn't know. She didn't know anything right now. Noah was standing so close she could feel his warm breath on her skin, making her shudder.

"What, Rach? What are you trying to do?" He asked in a husky voice, bending his head towards her. Did he... wanted he... Rachel had thought this whole thing was completely one-sided. Until now. The way he looked at her seemed just so... had she maybe missed something? Was there a possibility that Noah felt the same?

"What are doing?" She asked.

"Nothing." His voice sounded so casual, but Rachel could see so much more in his eyes. There always was more in his eyes.

"Noah- please..." She pressed both of her hands against his naked chest, trying to bring some distance between them. Rachel still wasn't completely sure what he was trying to do, but if it was what she was thinking, she had to stop it right this instance.

"What?" He asked softly, placing his hands on top of hers and pressing them closer to his chest. _God_, why did he have to be this sexy? "What do you wanna say?"

"Noah..." She breathed his name. "You- you really need to stop. We... we can't do this!" Rachel stuttered.

"We're not doing anything, Rachel." Puck answered, backing her up until her back hit the wall. "But we could. We can." His thumb slowly stroked over the back of her hand. "Unless you don't want to, then I'll stop." He said, standing still and looking down at her. "Do you want me to stop, Rachel?"

No. She didn't... but this was wrong. This was... she didn't even know what this was. All she knew right now was that it felt _so_ good. _He_ felt so good, standing just a few centimeters away from her, holding her hands to his chest. She could feel his heart beating under her touch and she wondered if her heart had the same rhythm.

"I-I can't just... Noah, this is..."

"Tell me. You want this, yes or no?"

"I... y-yes, but-"

* * *

Puck had enough of waiting. He pulled his hands from hers, grabbed her hips and hauled her against him. She gasped, looking at him like she was afraid of what would happen next, but at the same time her hands were digging into his shoulders, trying to pull him even closer. Fuck this, he thought as he leaned down and crashed his lips onto hers. She let out a little squeak as her hands wrapped around his neck. She tasted sweet and familiar and he pushed everything from his mind that didn't have anything to do with Rachel's lips on his. (Not that there had been much before.) When he parted her lips with his tongue, she moaned softly and he backed her up against the wall, pressing his body against hers. He could feel her still wet bikini panties and _fuck_, he couldn't help but push his hips a bit forward.

"Noah..." She gasped, running her hand through his hair. Rachel still wasn't trying to push him away. He had thought she would be a little more resistant, but maybe she had spent just as much time thinking about him as he about her. She was obviously just as into this as he was.

"Rach..." Puck groaned as he slipped one hand into her hair, tilting her head carefully so it wouldn't hit the wall. "You're so... goddamn... sexy, babe!" He breathed in between kisses. Puck just wished they were somewhere else, somewhere they could be alone. But he didn't want to complain. Rachel was kissing him in her still wet bikini, letting him press her against a wall where someone could catch them any second, and he was sure he hadn't been this hard in weeks. He could totally work with that. But suddenly she broke away, pressing her hands against his chest and looking at him like she just saw an alien.

There it was. The reaction he had expected much earlier. Puck was pretty sure she was totally freaked out now. He probably should be, too, since he cheated on his girlfriend. But with Rachel standing in front of him and pressing her rosy lips together, he really couldn't think about this other girl. Puck wondered if she'd kiss him again (_no complains, here_) or run away (_yeah, option one sounded much better_).

But what he didn't expect her to do was to slap him.

* * *

**Phew. That chapter was freaking long! I hope it was worth it and you liked it?  
I thought about waiting a bit longer for their first kiss, but then I was like 'Nah, it's Puck. He doesn't wait any longer.'  
So yeah, hope you agree?  
Next-Up: We'll see Chris again! Yay! **


	10. You're my virus

**A/N: Took me enough time, but here is another long chapter! There could be a few mistakes in here cause I didn't have that much time to look over everything, but just act like you don't notice anything when you find one^^ And now: enjoy!**

* * *

She couldn't believe what just happened.

Rachel wasn't _that_ girl, she didn't want to be like that. But she had just cheated on her boyfriend by letting Noah kiss her.

She wasn't even sure how it happened, everything went so fast. One second they were talking, the next she was pressed against the wall with his lips on hers. And everything else just kinda blanked out. She had felt his muscles tense under her touch, his hips pressed against hers. She could taste him, smell him, feel him everywhere. But then suddenly something in her head switched and she pushed him away.

He was getting married! She had just made a cheater out of an engaged man.

And now she was exactly _that_ girl!

So she slapped him. Not just for kissing her because she could have stopped him. (Rachel knew he wouldn't have pressured her into anything, he never had.) But also for making her fall for him again this fast, for looking at her the way he always did, for making her feel things she never had with anyone else. Just for being himself.

And she felt guilty the second her hand collided with his face.

She was totally against violence and hated sports like boxing and wrestling. Hurting other people just for fun seemed plain wrong. But also if there was a reason for fighting, Rachel always wanted to talk about things first because words always were the better weapon. And in her whole life, she had used this kind of violence only twice. Maybe she shouldn't have slapped Finn just because he didn't tell her about Quinn and the baby, but that guy at the mall who tried to grab her ass definitely deserved it.

But Noah... Noah didn't deserve to get slapped. Especially not for kissing her when she clearly wanted it just as much as he.

And now he was standing in front of her, his lips slightly parted and his head still turned to the side. His cheek was changing into a red color and Rachel had to stop herself from pulling him back to her and apologizing by kissing every inch of his gorgeous face.

But she just couldn't do that. He was getting married and she didn't want to be the reason for everything to fall apart. She already had done enough.

So she had to get away. Now.

She slipped away from him, looking at him for a split second. He finally looked up and as their eyes met, she could see the confusion on his face. Rachel wanted to say something, but she didn't really know what. Sorry for slapping you? You shouldn't have kissed me? Congratulations on the engagement? No. So she just turned on her heel, walking calmly around the toilette house and taking deep breaths. Then almost started to sprint back to their towels. She could still feel her hand pounding from the slap and she wondered if she had hurt him badly. She never meant to...

_God, why did she let any of that happen?_ She could have said no when he asked her if she wanted this. Why didn't she?

Because it would have been a lie.

But who cares? She has done nothing but lie these last few days! And now she had to do it again because she cheated on her boyfriend.

First she lied and then she cheated! Rachel didn't even know who she was anymore.

This only happened once before and under completely different circumstances. She had just found out Finn had lied to her, that he had slept with Santana and kept it a secret for months. So she had cheated on him by making out with his best friend.

_Noah._

Now she did the same thing, except Cedric didn't do anything wrong and Noah wasn't single. He was getting married! _Urgh._

The fact that she thought him cheating was worse than her probably said something about her personality, but Rachel just was that kind of girl who thought that a marriage was something important, something big and beautiful, something that brought two people even closer. And Noah wanted this with Quinn. He wanted to spent the rest of his life with her! So why did he kiss her? And why did she let him?

* * *

When she was back at the towels she threw all of her things into the big, yellow sports bag.

"Hey! What- what are you doing?" Cedric asked confused, sitting up from where he'd been lying on the towel.

"I'm..." She couldn't tell him now. She couldn't. Not when Quinn was sitting just a few meters away, listening to their conversation. "I'm not feeling that well. Can we drive home?" So she decided to do what she could best. Lie. Maybe it should worry her how easy the lies fell over her lips these days.

"Oh okay... um sure, you-what's wrong? Can you even drive?" He asked, stoking his hand softly over her back. It was sweet, the way he worried about her. Sometimes it was just annoying, how he always tried to protect her and acted like he was her father. She already had two of those, she didn't need a third one, telling her what she should do, what was best for her. Maybe it was the little age difference, or maybe he was just more grown-up in general. But most of the time she liked him being all protective about her. It made her feel loved.

But he shouldn't be this nice to her right now. She had just cheated on him!

"Yeah it's alright, I just... it's probably the weather and just need some rest!" She answered, getting up and folding the towels. Rachel was just glad Noah wasn't back yet. She couldn't handle seeing him now, next to Cedric and Quinn. Speaking off... Quinn was sitting next to them, a folded book in her lap and a worried look on her face. Rachel felt sick when she looked at the blonde girl. She not only made out with her boyfriend, no, with her _fiancée_, two minutes ago, she also slept with him two years ago! And Quinn didn't know anything about that!

"Are you sure you'll be okay? Puck and I came with the car, I'm sure he'll drive you home when he's back from the toilette!" Quinn said with a worried smile on her lips.

Yeah, Noah driving her home would be just amazing. With Cedric and Quinn on the back seats.

"Oh please, don't worry. I don't want to... ruin your day." _Right._ It would have been funny, if it wasn't so incredibly awful what she had done.

"Do you have everything?" Rachel asked Cedric, getting more and more nervous. Noah could return any second. She wondered what he was doing anyway, maybe the same thing she did. Trying to prevent anything worse.

"Yes, I do... Rachel, are you one hundred percent sure you can drive?" Cedric asked again and she kind of wanted to scream. Or cry. Or both. She couldn't handle him being all worried right now. She didn't deserve that!

"I'm alright!" She hissed. "I-I'm sorry... I just have a little headache, that's all. Can we just please go now?" Rachel begged.

"Uh yeah, let's go." He said sighing as he got up. "Quinn, I hope you'll have a great day. We'll probably see us soon anyway!"

"You, too! I really hope so! And Rachel, get well soon, okay?"

"Yeah I-I'll try... thanks!"

* * *

So, there were three possibilities.

One, Rachel had started to freak out and told her boyfriend everything by now, so when he'd return Rachel would cry, Cedric would be really angry and Quinn would murder him. Not so great.

Two, Rachel freaked out, but at least went home to do so. That would mean Quinn didn't know anything, but Rachel still could tell her boyfriend about it later on and Puck would probably get into trouble, too. Cedric didn't seem like the kind of guy who'd punch him in the face, but he sure as hell wouldn't stay quiet and do nothing.

Three, she was still sitting next to Cedric and Quinn, eating grapes with them and having a normal conversation about Disney movies or what the fuck ever. From what he had seen, Cedric would totally be that wimp and cry while watching Pocahontas. Rachel had made him watch it once with his sister while his mom was at work. It hadn't been that bad, but that was probably also thanks to the vegan chocolate chip cookies she had baked before. (It was kind of a weird moment to think about that.)

But you know, Puck knew her. Kinda. Like, he used to be her best friend and even if they hadn't really talked (at all) the last two years, she was still Rachel. The Rachel he knew. The Rachel how used to be his... girl. So there was no way she wasn't freaking out right now. Puck only hoped it wasn't next to his girlfriend who'd ask questions he didn't want to answer. Which kinda sounded totally wrong in his head cause shit, he had to tell her anyway. Right? Like... you should tell your girlfriend you cheated on her and stuff.

Just to get something clear. He wasn't the kind of guy who cheated on his girlfriends. He wasn't. Yeah, he used to fuck around a lot during High School, but it's not like he really had a girlfriend back then. Santana was just his fuck buddy, who was getting it on with Brittany anyway so it's not like she cared when he made out with other chicks. She just started that shit with marking her territory when Brittany was in an actual relationship with Artie and she realized she didn't have someone all for herself anymore.

Lauren... well, she kind of was a total bitch. Pretty cool, but a bitch. She didn't let him do anything, really, and after a while he was getting sick of having to try so hard without any success. So he went and fucked that married chick at Breadsticks. And Lauren didn't care, she was just with him so she had someone to order around and, even if she never admitted it, raise her reputation. (Cause yeah, he was a fucking stud. Deal with it.) So yeah, no cheating, really.

Quinn. Well fuck, super ice queen. They basically were together to make the whole pregnancy look like it wasn't a total fuck up, or at least that were his reasons. She couldn't really blame him for making out with other chicks though, since she didn't want to kiss him herself when they lived together! He didn't even really need sex from her, since, ya know, this kinda got them into that situation. But he was a guy and a little affection isn't that much to ask, right? So yeah, he did kind of cheat on her, but that was mostly her fault. S

And then, last but not least, there was Rachel. They dated for a week, but he didn't cheat on her. Wasn't that hard, since she was pretty eager to make out all the time, but still. Going from fucking someone nearly every day to fucking no one for a week? You gotta give him that. And then, when they were flirting around in their senior year, he swore, he didn't have sex for a few weeks! Weeks! Like in plural! And that should really count for something.

So if you think about it, there was only one time Puck seriously cheated on his girlfriend. And that was two years ago.

On Quinn.

With Rachel.

Huh. He could see a pattern. And he kind of had a problem.

If he told Quinn about the kiss with Rachel he'd have to tell her about that night at Kurt and Blaine's wedding too and then she would break up with him, that's for sure. And he didn't want that... right? Right. Of course not. Why would he want this. Stupid.

So he just wouldn't tell her. He'd just go back there and act like nothing happened.

That is, if Rachel hadn't said anything.

There was this really insane part in him that hoped she had. That Cedric was pissed and broke up with her and that Quinn would do the same with him. Maybe everything else would be easier then. Maybe they'd finally...

No. Scratch that. Dumb thought. Quinn was his girlfriend. He wanted to be with her. He wouldn't say anything.

Yeah.

Maybe he'd start to believe it if he said it often enough.

(He knew he wouldn't.)

* * *

"Here, drink that!" Cedric put the cup in her hands. "You'll feel much better afterwards." He smiled, stroking the soft skin around her ankle. Rachel was pretty sure she'd go to hell for this. She never had been a big fan of lying. When necessary, yeah, she'd do it. And she could admit that she already had lied in situations that didn't actually require a lie, but sometimes it just felt good, being the only one who knew the truth. (Her attitude towards lying disturbed her a bit.) But just because she did it didn't mean she actually felt great about it. She knew it was wrong, her parents had raised her just right. But that didn't stop her from doing it again and again.

"Thank you..." She whispered, taking a sip of something that tasted really gross. But you know, that's what you get from being in a relationship with a doctor. At least she never was ill for long. (Well now she wasn't ill at all, but she couldn't really say that.)

"You wanna take a nap? I'm sure you'll feel better afterwards." He smiled.

"Yeah... I'm sure you're right." He bent down to kiss her, but she turned her head so his lips landed on her temple. She just couldn't kiss him while she still felt Noah's lips on hers.

"I don't want to infect you if it's something else... like a virus or something." Rachel said apologetic. A virus? Yeah, and Noah gave it to her.

"I didn't know you were feeling that bad... you're sure you don't wanna see a doctor?" He held his hand to her forehead for the millionth time.

"No, no it's not! I'm fine, really. I'm just being careful!"

"Alright. Get some sleep, darling! I'll wake you up for dinner." He kissed the top of her head again and walked out of her room, closing the door quietly.

She had to tell him. There was no other way. But how?

* * *

When Puck returned, Rachel and Cedric were gone. And Quinn wasn't standing there with scissors in her hand, ready to cut his balls off. So that was a good sign.

"Rachel wasn't feeling so well so they left!" His girlfriend said before he could even ask. Funny, 10 minutes ago Rachel had felt just fine. More than fine, actually. She had felt amazing pressed against him with her hands in his neck and her tongue... _Oh, he should probably say something. _

"Uhh... alright." If Quinn had looked at him, she would have known something was up. But she was way to fixed on her book to realized anything.

"So you wanted to drive to the lake to read to whole time?" He said and flopped down on his towel next to Quinn. Acting normal would probably be for the best. Puck looked at his girlfriend, lying next to him on her belly. She really looked beautiful in her yellow bikini. Maybe he could just forget about these last days and start new with her. They could work it out.

"Shh, it's exciting right now!" Quinn shushed him.

"Why? Someone's dying? Did they found a corpse? A shooting? No? Then lay the fucking book down and gimme your attention, babe."

"Their baby will come in a few days! I just have 50 pages left." She said as if that would change everything.

"Well good, then you can finish it tonight. Get up, I wanna go swimming!"

"Leave me alone, Puck. You're old enough to go by yourself!" Quinn bitched and turned the page of her fucking book again.

"Are you serious now?" He looked at her, but here eyes didn't leave her book for a second. "Wow, alright. You're... whatever." Puck just scoffed and walked away.

Bonding time at the lake? Yeah, more like: making out with Rachel and going swimming alone because your girlfriend cares more about her book than spending time with you.

_Rachel would have gone swimming with him. He knew that much._

And fuck. How would he supposed to realize that he loved his girlfriend more than that other girl when Quinn didn't even help him a bit?

* * *

Acting like she was ill had been a bad idea. Her dads were babying her like she was in kindergarten and Cedric asked her how she was feeling every 5 minutes.

"How is your head feeling?" "Are you feeling dizzy?" "You want another tea?" "Do you need a hot-water bottle?" "We have painkillers if you need some more." "I'll make you a soup." "Are you sure you don't want to drive to the doctor? It's not far."

She was 22, not 2. She could handle a little sickness.

(Well, she wasn't even sick, but you know. She could if she was.)

So after drinking 593 cups of tea, 3 hot-water bottles and 4 hours of sleep (lying in bed and thinking about _him_) Rachel couldn't take it any longer. She was sweating and felt all sticky because, you know, who the hell used hot-water bottles in midsummer? So she decided to take a shower. Cedric was still downstairs with her dads, which she was kind of thankful for. Sure, it would have been nice if he stayed with her a little while, but she knew him and he was most probably afraid that she actually had a virus and would infect him, too.

She hated herself for her next thought, but she knew that Noah wouldn't have cared about the germs. He would have made sure that she was getting better and wasn't bored as hell. He had done it before, more than once.

* * *

_"I think I'm dying." Rachel groaned as she took a sip of the peppermint tea Noah made her. She had a runny nose, her throat was sore and even though the thermometer told them her temperature was just fine, she felt like she had a fever. A really high fever._

_"Shut up." Noah answered and took something out of his bag. Rachel had called him 20 minutes ago, saying she was really sick and couldn't come over to babysit Becca with him today. 10 minutes later he showed up, a little bag in his hand, telling her to lie down cause he was going to take care of everything._

_"That's really rude, Noah." Rachel pouted, putting down her cup on the little bedside table._

_"Stop being a drama queen and get into bed. We're going to watch a kick-ass movie now!"_

_"I'm not a... wait, we? You're staying?" She asked surprised. Her dads where visiting her aunt in Toledo the whole weekend, so Rachel was on her own. And Puck knew she hated being all by herself, that's why she wanted to come over today to 'help' him with Becca. (Not that he needed any help, he just liked spending time with Rachel.) But since that fell through, Becca was at her friend's house now and he was here._

_"Of course I'm fucking staying, why do you think I'm here?" Puck laughed and put the dvd into the player._

_"I don't know, I just thought-"_

_"Yeah, we already had that. Stop thinking."_

_"You can't forbid me to talk and think, Noah! And just by the way, I'll have you know that it is impossible for a human being to stop thinking because when-"_

_"I don't care, Berry. Get into bed!" He ordered and pulled back the covers of her bed._

_"Noah! Stop interrupting me!" Rachel stomped her foot on the ground. _

_"Are you coming or what?" Puck ignored her as he got comfortable in her bed. (He loved her mattress, it was so freaking soft.) Rachel rolled her eyes, but slid under the covers next to him as he clicked PLAY on the disc menu._

_"Aren't you afraid you'll get sick, too?" She asked quietly._

_"I'm awesome, I don't get sick." Puck scoffed and made Rachel laugh. _

_"Noah?" She asked as the movie started to play and she saw something exploding. (Of course it was something with loads of action. She shouldn't have let him choose the movie!)  
_

_"You know, for saying your throat is hurting, you're talking way to much!" Puck looked at her, raising his eyebrows. Rachel just rolled her eyes before smiling at him. _

_"Thank you for taking care of me, Noah. That's really sweet of you!" Rachel mumbled, putting her arm around his hip and laying her head onto his chest. She felt her eyelids growing heavier and __heavier _by the second, but she was determined to at least see the first 20 minutes so she could tell him later how unrealistic everything was and how he had a horrible taste in movies.

_"Yeah. Whatever." He said with a smile playing on his lips as his fingers started to comb through her hair. "Now shut up, this movie is awesome."_

_(She didn't even last 10 minutes, but it was kind of impossible to stay awake with his hand stroking over her back and his chin resting on her head.) _

* * *

**Last time I said you'd see Chris in this chapter. You didn't.  
****But the chapter was getting too long, so he's going to be in the very first scene of the next chapter. I swear!  
Let me know what you think in the comments and I'll see you again sometime around next week!**


	11. Tell me what to do

**A/N: Sorry for the delay, but you know... school, exams, summer, World Cup! Anyone of you watching? And if yes which team are you rooting for? Anyway, I'll just let you read the new chapter now, so: enjoy!**

* * *

Rachel was turning him into an alcoholic. Seriously, this was the second time this week he came to this pub and it was all her fault. And alright, maybe also his. He probably shouldn't have kissed her. Then he wouldn't be sitting here right now, thinking about her while drinking his third beer and waiting for his friend to get his ass over here. But even if he hadn't kissed her, he'd probably still think about her now. At home, sitting next to Quinn on the sofa while she was reading a crappy book and ignoring the hell out of him. He wasn't sure if that would be better or worse. (Probably the latter.)

When Chris finally approached him he already felt slightly drunk. The red-haired girl behind the counter was trying to flirt with him by giving him one drink after another. He didn't really mind as long as he didn't have to pay for that shit. She was cute and had a pretty smile, but he wasn't interested. And anyway, the girl in his thoughts was way cuter and her smile wasn't just pretty, it was gorgeous. Everything about Rachel was freaking gorgeous. Her smile, her eyes, her hair, her lips, her legs, her everything. Puck wondered, not for the first time, if everything were easier if she wouldn't be so damn beautiful.

"Dude, you better have a good reason for calling me. I was about to get it going with Jess and just came here because you said it was an emergency! You know how moody she is these days, it can take weeks before she let's me touch her again." Chris groaned and he flopped down next to him. From what Puck has heard, pregnant women weren't a lot of fun when their horny phase was done. Chris had talked enough about his _problems _in the last weeks.

(But really, Quinn never even had a horny phase, so dude should be happy.)

"I kissed Rachel." He slurred, not even looking at his friend. There just was no sense in lying now. And Puck wanted to talk about it with someone. Preferably with Rachel, but since she was the one who didn't want to talk (fuck, when did he become the sentimental one of them?), he'd take what he could get. Which wasn't much at all.

"Really? Oh, alright..." Chris said and took Puck's beer out of his hands to take a sip.

"Alright? That's all you gotta say?" Puck tried to snatch the beer out of Chris' hand, but his friend didn't let him. Chris knew drinking wouldn't help his friend now.

"I mean, I can't really say I'm surprised." He shrugged, taking the last sip of Puck's beer. _What a great friend, _Puck thought.

"... the fuck is that supposed to mean? I'm not some cheating jerk!" Puck exclaimed, glaring at his friend.

"Well I don't think you'll deny that you can be a jerk, like, 90% of the time. And you did kind of cheat, so..." Chris laughed and ordered two glasses of water. He'd have to get Puck at least a bit more sober before sending him home to his girlfriend again. (Or maybe soon-to-be ex girlfriend?)

"It's not like I did it that often..." Puck mumbled, burying his head in his hands. Maybe talking about it had been a bad idea.

"Woah wait a second! So this already happened before?" Chris asked shocked. He knew Puck since about two years and never, ever had he said something about cheating on Quinn. He knew that they had their problems, which wasn't surprising since that girl was fucking insane, but cheating? No single word about it.

"Just once! And was two years ago. With... Rachel." Puck murmured, sighting deeply.

(Yes, he saw the connection here, thank you very much!)

"So that's the whole problem? You cheated on Quinn with Rachel two years ago and then you were acting like a jackass because you were afraid of what could happen? But now you cheated again?" Chris stated, looking way too amused for Puck's taste.

"Yeah that's what I just said, are you deaf? And stop looking at me like this okay? I know this is fucked up!" Puck had hoped his friend could make him feel better, but all he did was remind him on how badly he screwed up.

"And what are you gonna do now?" Chris asked curiously.

"Fuck if I know. I had hoped you'd tell me." Puck looked at him expectantly. If there was one person who knew how to handle chicks, it was his best friend. Hell, his girl was pregnant with his child so it was safe to say they'd stay together for a long ass time. (And no, it wasn't the same with Quinn and him.)

"Well I don't know, but for me it's pretty clear." Chris shrugged. "Break up with Quinn and make that girl yours!"

Alright,_ is he fucking stupid?_ "Are you fucking stupid? I can't do that!"

"Why?" Chris asked seriously.

"_Because!_ Quinn and I... we're... I can't just break up with her. And Rachel has a boyfriend anyway." Yeah, the second reason was probably it.

"Okay, did she kiss you back?" As if he ever kissed a girl who didn't kiss him back.

"Hell yeah." And for the record, she didn't just _kiss_ him back, she was fully _making out_ with him. No one could resist the Puckerone.

"Well then she probably doesn't care that much about her boyfriend. Or is she the kind of girl who goes around and kisses various guys without having feelings for them?" Thinking about Rachel kissing other guys made Puck's jaw clench. It always had this effect on him, regardless if it was seeing her with Finn or Jesse or hearing her talk about how hot that guy from One Direction is (please, as if). Even when she had this stupid crush on Mr. Schuester he had felt kinda... alright, he had been totally jealous. There. He said it. (Don't tell.)

"Nah, she's all romantic and shit. Searching for her big love. When we dated that one week in sophomore year I didn't get to second base even though I sang a song by Neil fucking Diamond for her in front of the whole Club!" Puck shook his head and had to smile. Rachel was probably one of the biggest dreamers he had ever met. It was kind of adorable. (Not the only adorable thing about her, though.) "Wait does this... you think she has feelings for me?"

"I don't know, dude. You're the one kissing her!" Chris laughed and earned a glare from his best friend. "Alright, so let's analyze this."

"Shit, you sound so much like her now. Like, seriously!"

"Shut up, I'm trying to help you!" Chris ordered and Puck raised his arms in surrender. "So you kissed her. What did happen afterwards?"

"She slapped me." Really fucking hard, actually. Girl had balls. (Well no, she really hadn't. He knew that first hand! But whatever, you know what he meant.)

"Ooookay. Well, that's not ideal. Maybe it was just a reflex?" Chris said questioning.

"A reflex?" Puck laughed. His best friend wasn't only stupid, he was freaking insane.

"Yeah well if someone kissed me all of sudden, I'd probably... well I wouldn't slap them because I don't hurt woman and if it's a dude I'd rather punch him. Although... why would I punch someone for kissing me like it's a bit harsh, don't you think? Maybe he's confused and wants to test something and punching him wouldn't help to-"

"Fuck, dude, chill. Think about your gay fantasies later and just help me now!" Puck hissed.

"Fact is, you kissed her and she let you. But she also slapped you afterwards. This could mean she was either mad at you or, I don't know, at herself? Women are crazy like that. And you just need to find that out to start phase 2." He said and clapped into his hands. Puck just stared at him.

"What the fuck are you talking about?"

"Well you want her, right? So phase 1 is finding out how she feels about you. If we don't know that, we can't start phase 2: getting both of you single!"

"Alright, just forget everything about that! I shouldn't have told you... you're worse than Rachel with all your analyzing and planning and _different phases_? Really, Chris?" Maybe he should have waited until _after_ Chris got some from his girlfriend. Dude was missing tons of masculinity right now.

"Hey, but I mean... you're into that kind of stuff, right?" Chris joked, clapping Puck on the back.

"Seriously, _fuck you_."

* * *

Rachel was sitting on the sofa, watching an episode of Pretty Little Liars. Her 'sick break' lasted two whole days, but was finally over now, so she didn't get hot water bottles and tea cups every 5 minutes. _The sleep did her well,_ her dads had said. (And yes, she still felt bad about lying to them. And to Cedric, of course.) But it honestly did! She had her whole bed for herself since Cedric was still afraid of her possible virus infecting him too and slept in the guest room. At first she had been pissed since she never had been ill in the first place and if she were, he should be the one taking care of her. But maybe this little time-out wasn't all that bad for their relationship. They had spent every single second together for the past week, sometimes she just needed time for herself.

So yeah, were was she? Right, watching 4 girl on her TV running away from somebody, without even knowing who it was. If she started to get text like 'I'm still here and I know everything', her first idea would be to go to the police. Or at least talk to her dads. Like seriously, if someone tried to kill you, wouldn't it be smart to tell somebody? Anybody, really? But then the show would've been over after only 2 or 3 episodes, so Rachel tried to overlook the illogic and just enjoy the show.

"Rachel?" Cedric said as he came out of the guest room. It kinda became his room since he was in there everyday for at least an hour, talking to someone from the hospital. (After a few days she just stopped trying.)

"Mhh?" She answered, stopping the episode.

"I just got a call from the hospital. One of my patients had a cardiovascular failure, so they put him into an induced coma." Cedric told her, swatting his mobile phone in the palm of his hand again and again. She hated it when he did this, telling her about operations and complications and people nearly dying. It belonged to his daily schedule, but he had seen so many people dying. Rachel couldn't handle it that well.

"Will he be okay?" Rachel asked after a few seconds.

"I don't know." Cedric answered honestly. "But I have to fly back. We'll have to open him again and find the problem."

"...what?" _He had to fly back?_

"I'm really sorry, Twinkle, but I have to!" Cedric said as she got up from her place on the sofa, stopping in front of him.

"But... you said you'd take two weeks off! It's bad enough that you're glued to your phone the whole day, can't someone else... do the operation thing?" She whined. Maybe it was selfish to want her boyfriend for herself and keep him from saving lives, but it wasn't like he was the only one who could operate someone. He wasn't even the chief physician, so really. What was the problem?

"Sure, but I'd rather do it myself. If it comes out we did something wrong or overlooked anything, I want to be in charge to fix it!" He explained calmly.

Rachel sighed deeply, shaking her head. She knew she couldn't change his mind anymore, so it was pointless to argue. "When is your flight?"

"Tomorrow at 7am." He answered. Cedric knew Rachel wasn't happy with him at all, but he still stood in front of her and looked her into the eyes while they talked. At least she had to give him that.

"Tomorrow? Wow..."

"I know, I know and I'm so, very sorry, Rachel! But I promise I'm going to make it up to you." He said, taking her face into his hands. "Okay?" Cedric looked her deep into the eyes and she could see that he was completely honest.

"Yeah..." She mumbled, trying to not let him see how angry she actually was.

"I'm sorry." He breathed against her lips as he bend down to kiss her. "I'll try to make it better, okay?"

Rachel found herself nodding. She just didn't want to be mad at him! And he was obviously trying to apologize in every way possible.

So she let him.

Thing was, Rachel wasn't sure if he actually could make it (them) any better. No matter what he tried.

* * *

"Dude, you totally suck today! I won for the 6th time in a row!" Chris said as he threw the controller on the pillow next to him, frustrated with his best friend and his non-existent abilities to play Battlefiled.

"Fuck off and be happy you get to win once in a while!" Puck replied, taking a sip of his coke. He wasn't allowed to drink any alcohol today. His fucking _friend_ forbid him to drink alcohol! He'd have to get a new buddy because Chris was slowly turning into Christina.

"What's with you? Still Rachel?" Chris asked, watching him curiously.

"Shut the fuck up, man" Puck hissed, looking around for his girlfriend. She was working in her office even though they had two weeks off (again, fucking insane!), but what if she came out to get something to eat and heard them talking about Rachel? Wouldn't end very well. (Because no, he hadn't told her yet.)

"Relax, man. Quinn might be crazy, but she doesn't have any super powers. But with your behavior, I'm kinda surprised she hasn't realized anything yet!" Chris wondered out loud.

"Whatever. You wanna keep talking like girls or keep playing?"

"And see you losing again? Nah, it's more entertaining to watch paint dry." His best friend laughed and switched of the TV. It's not like he didn't enjoy winning, but Puck was so bad, it wasn't even fun watching him missing the target every single time. "So, I take it you didn't talk to her?"

"No, I didn't." Puck clenched his jaw.

"Come on, Puck, just get over yourself. Seriously, this is turning you into a total pussy and it's no fun hanging out with you!" He was calling him a pussy? Puck snorted loudly.

"It's not like I'm forcing you to stay." He scowled, rubbing his hand over his head.

"Why don't you just call her?" Chris sighed. He really wanted to help Puck, but he was just so stubborn - like always - that he was in the way of himself.

"I don't even have her number." Puck tried.

"Quinn does." Chris countered.

"Well I can't really ask her, you moron!" _Hey Quinn, can you give me Rachel's number? I just need to talk to her cause I kissed her at the lake and I wanna know if she feels the same so I can break up with you. Uh huh. Sure. _

"Then drive over to her house."

"And when her fucking douche of a boyfriend opens the door?"

"Then you say you need to talk to Rachel in private, she can't really say no without giving something away when her boyfriend is standing next to her." Chris explained. He made it sound so simple. But it wasn't, it could be. Right?

"I don't know, dude... what am I even supposed to say to her?" Puck sighed.

"Just what comes to your mind. Well maybe nothing too sexual because that would be pretty unappropriated, but you know. If she really is into you she probably doesn't mind that you're a pervert." The dark-haired boy laughed.

"Fuck off." Chris earned a glare that could kill. Just because he enjoyed sex and wanted to have it 24/7 (at least with one girl) didn't mean he was a pervert.

"Oh come on, don't act like you didn't already imagine those kind of things with her!" Chris patted his friends back as he got up. "Just tell her how you feel."

"I don't even know how I feel." Puck mumbled as he walked his friend to the door. (Yeah, he had manners. Shut up.)

When Chris turned around, he just smiled. "Yeah, you do. You're just too afraid to admit it!"

* * *

**Another build-up chapter, but I hope you liked it nevertheless? **  
**Next chapter will be the start of the second week, yay! Took us long enough...  
And who knows what might happen next with Cedric gone and Puck getting pushed into the right direction (aka Rachel) by Chris?  
You'll find out soon (hopefully)!  
**


	12. If only for right now

**A/N: So this chapter took a whole week and I'm so sorry! I just couldn't get into the mood of writing, which made me really frustrated! But I promise that the wait is worth it. Well ****at least **I hope you'll think that too!

**WARNING (kinda): I didn't want to change the rating, so I went very light on the smut (I think), but if you don't want to read any, then just skip that part. Or don't read the second half of this chapter at all. ****So yeah, that's it for now: enjoy!**

* * *

Rachel didn't drive him to the airport the next day, her dad did. For one because it was really early and also because she was still mad at him for leaving. It was his job and she got that, but she still hated the fact that he cared more about the hospital than her. And she hated even more that she felt the same.

It wasn't supposed to be like that, right? He should be the most important thing in her life, next to her dads. But she knew he wasn't. And she knew she wasn't for him either.

After he had left, she tried to go back to sleep. But of course it didn't work. Her head was full of thoughts, questioning her relationship, the last two years of her live, the decisions she had made. And everywhere he popped up. _Noah_. Even though she hadn't even heard from him in the past two years, he was still the reason behind a lot of her decisions.

Would she have slept with Cedric in Mexico if she hadn't spent so much time with Noah at the wedding? Would she have fallen into a relationship with him this fast if Noah hadn't broken her heart one week before?

She knew that answer. And it kinda scared her.

So after both of her dads had left for work, she got up, ate an apple, then put on some shorts and pulled her old running shoes out of her wardrobe. A little run could maybe help her to free her mind again. And anyway, her condition could need some training.

* * *

He'd talk to her. Today. That was his plan.

Quinn was at her mom's house cause her sister was back for a couple of days to plan her wedding and go dress shopping with her family or something, (no, he didn't really listen) so she wouldn't ask any questions when he left the house in the early morning.

Puck still didn't know how he was going to talk to Rachel, what he should say, but he'd simply take his friend's advice and just go for it. Rachel knew him, she knew he sucked at talking about the important stuff. Puck was just hoping that at least her dads were out of the house because with 3 other people around, it would get hard to talk to her at all.

So after Quinn had left, he slipped into a pair of blue shorts, pulled a simple black shirt over his head and he was ready to go.

When he stopped in front of the Berry's house, there was no car in the driveway. Not a bad start. After 5 minutes of sitting in his car and feeling like a creep, he got out. It's not like he'd storm in there and take her against the nearest wall. He'd just talk to her. (Even though, you know, wouldn't be the worst thing on earth to do said thing.)

He in took a deep breath before ringing the bell. (It was almost embarrassing how nervous he was.) He waited for a full minute before ringing again.

_Shit._

Maybe she wasn't even there because there was no way she was still asleep at 10am. But before he could try it another time, the door suddenly opened. Rachel stood in front of him, wearing pink cotton shorts and a white tank top, her still wet her in a messy bun at the top of her head. There was no sign of any make up on her face, but she looked so fucking gorgeous, standing there barefoot in front of him. He was already so fucked.

"Noah..." She said, obviously surprised to see him. Hell, he was kinda surprised to see her too, even though he was the one standing outside her house in the morning.

"Hey." He said softly, his lips curling into a small smile. He just couldn't help it. (Shut up.) "Can I come in?"

Rachel looked at him hesitantly for a second before opening the door wider so he could step inside. When she closed the door behind her, Puck looked around the living room. No sign of douche face or her dads. Huh.

"So..." Rachel said, walking around him so she was in front of him again. She probably just took a shower since he could smell her shampoo in the air. _God, this shampoo. _

"Are your dads here?" He asked, getting that part over with.

"No, they both have to work today." Rachel answered shortly, crossing her arms over her chest like she was ashamed. There really was no need. She looked fucking hot. He'd tell her that if he didn't think she'd slap him or throw him out or something.

"And um..." He cleared his throat. "Cedric?"

"He flew back to New York this morning."

Huh. He certainly didn't expect that.

"What? Why? You didn't tell him about..." _The way I pressed you into a wall and made you moan into my mouth._

"No, it's... it's something with one of his patients." She said, looking at her toes and shifting uncomfortably.

"Oh... okay." Puck replied and scratched his hand over his head. They were completely alone! Cedric was back in New York (_what a shame!_) and her dads at work. The conditions couldn't be any better.

(Seriously, sometimes he couldn't believe his own luck.)

"So..." He started slowly, thinking about what to say first, where to start.

"Noah, why are you here?" She uncrossed her arms and pressed them into her hips. Well fuck, taking her against a wall didn't sound so weird anymore.

"I thought we should talk about some... stuff." Puck said, trying to take his eyes from her body. (Which was really fucking hard, for the record.)

"So talk." Rachel simply answered, locking her eyes with his. He had her full attention, all he needed to do was get out some words.

"Yeah... I-I mean... fuck, this is harder than I thought." He sighed, throwing his head back and taking a deep breath. When he looked back at her, there was only one thing that came to his mind. "I'm really sorry, Rachel."

She looked at him for a second, trying to figure out what he meant, before speaking again. "For what, exactly?"

"_Everything_. Acting like a jackass the first half of the week, not trying to call you for the past two years, fucking up our whole friendship, hurting you at the wedding..." He mumbled that last bit. Puck hated to think about that night. He hated it, but he also loved it. The memories of her beneath him, moaning his name, pulling him closer, kissing his neck, sliding her hands up and down his back... those were amazing memories. But thinking about what happened afterwards, watching her leave with that hurt expression in her eyes... it wasn't something he wanted to think about ever again.

"That's it?" She raised her brows. When he shrugged, Rachel shook her head, laughing ironically. "You apologize for things you did two years ago, but not for something that happened three days ago." She stated.

"Yeah I'm... I'm not really sorry for that." Puck laughed, but stopped when he saw Rachel's angry look. "I mean... shit, maybe I should have chosen a better place... and time... but I don't regret kissing you." He said honestly.

"Noah I really don't think this is going somewhere,so can you please just-"

"No listen. I know I'm bad with words and expressing my feelings and shit, but this is... we're... something! And I know that you felt it, too!" He said, taking a step forwards and sliding his hands down her arms. Rachel shivered at his touch, sucking in a tiny breath.

"Noah please..." She breathed as his hands slipped into hers, stepping even closer while doing so.

"What?" Puck breathed as he bend his head down to hers. Rachel could feel his warm breath on her skin and it took every power in her to resist him.

"Noah, we can't do this!" Rachel whined, pressing her hands against his chest to keep some distance. He knew she was trying to fight him, but he also knew she would have stopped him by now if she really didn't want this.

"Why? Because of your _boyfriend_?" He spat the words out, letting go of her and threading his fingers through his hair. "Well I don't see him around!"

Rachel crossed her arms over her chest, taking a step back. "Yes, because of Cedric. And because of _Quinn_. God Noah, you're... you're getting married! This isn't like the last time and if I thought it was wrong then - which it really was by the way - it's even worse now! You can't just-"

His brain kinda switched off for a few seconds. Did she just... ?

"Woah woah woah hold on a second. What the fuck are you talking about? _Married_?" He looked at her confused.

"I found the magazines, Noah." Rachel whispered, turning away from him.

_THE FUCK? _

"What magazines? What the hell is going on?" Puck really didn't understand anything right now.

"The wedding magazines? God Noah, don't even try to deny it. There were stickers on the pages!" Rachel threw her hands up, turning around again to face him. He just stared at her for a few seconds, trying to sort out everything that was going on at the moment.

"Where did you find them?" Puck asked softly.

"In your kitchen drawer. You send me to search for matches and they were just there..." Rachel sighed, looking around the living room so she didn't have to look at him. Puck just stood there, unable to believe what she had just told him.

"And you think... you think Quinn and I are...? _Fuck_, are you crazy?"

"I am most certainly not!" Rachel snapped, glaring at him.

"Well if you think I'd marry her then yeah, you are." Puck laughed, shaking his head. Seriously, he really liked her, but sometimes she could be so stupid.

"You're... you're not going to marry?" She asked in a tiny voice, glancing at him from under her lashes.

"HELL NO! Our relationship should have ended like months ago. As if I'd ask her to marry me!" Puck snorted, still amused that Rachel would ever assume that.

"Oh... I-I'm sorry, I didn't know that..." She pressed her lips together, looking to the floor.

And suddenly it clicked.

"Wait... so that was your whole problem? You thought I was getting married and in your crazy, beautiful head you thought that made it worse to want this? Between us?" He grinned, taking a few steps towards her and taking her face into his hands again.

"I... it still isn't okay. This... Noah we're-"

"Amazingly hot together?" Puck finished, laughing softly as he stroked her cheek softly with his thumb. It made her smile, even if it only lasted for a split second.

"This is wrong." She sighed, laying her hands on top of his arms but not pulling them away. _  
_

"No, it's not. It's just a shitty moment." Puck explained, brushing some hair out of her face.

Rachel nodded, letting her hands fall to his chest and fisting the hem of his shirt into her small hands which only made him come closer. (Not that he wouldn't have done it anyway.)

"And when is the right moment?" She asked softly, looking up at him.

"I don't know." He answered honestly. Puck knew that this wasn't okay, that they shouldn't be doing this. But he couldn't help the way he felt about her. It was like he needed to touch her all the time or he'd explode or something stupid like that. He still was with Quinn and she had her stupid doctor boyfriend and even though he hated that guy, he knew he didn't deserve this. Neither did Quinn. But hey, no one ever said he was selfless! So who cared about donkey face or the fact that his girlfriend apparently wanted to marry him (he'd have to look at those magazines at some point). Right now, all that mattered was Rachel. And with her standing right there in front of him, looking at him like she needed him as much as he needed her, he knew he wouldn't be able to stop himself.

"Maybe we're just thinking too much. Maybe we're just making everything complicated when it's actually pretty simple." He shrugged. Puck's hands found their way down the sides of her body to pull her closer, never leaving her eyes with hers. He expected to see at least a little hesitation, but instead, he only saw the look of desire in her eyes. So he just kissed her because right then and there, right or wrong didn't matter anymore.

* * *

He kissed her with so much passion it left her knees shaking. Noah always had this effect on her, his kisses made her feel completely boneless and let her mind go black. She gasped when he grinded his hips against her. Her hands slid into the hair at the back of his neck and made him groan. Rachel knew this was wrong, but it felt more than right, having him all pressed up again her, his hand touching every part of her body at once.

"Rach, if you don't want this... you need to stop me now!" Puck moaned, placing hot kisses on her neck and making her tingle.

"I can't..." She breathed and pulled his lips onto hers again, slipping her tongue into his mouth before pulling away to nip at his earlobe. "I can't tell you to stop, Noah." She whispered into his ear as he let out a deep moan.

"Fuck... " Puck hissed, pulling away to look into her eyes. "So that's a yes?" Puck asked. He wanted her so badly, but he needed to be sure that she felt the same. That she wouldn't regret this later on.

Rachel swallowed, looking deeply into his dark hazel eyes. She knew she just had to say the words and he'd stop. But she didn't want him to stop anymore. She needed him to show her how much he wanted her. So she nodded, her fingers tracing along his jaw line. "Yes."

And this was all he needed to hear. With a growl he captured her lips again. Her hands automatically went to his shoulders as he backed her up against the nearest wall, slipping his hand under her thin top. He didn't think about Quinn or Cedric, about her dads possibly coming home any time soon or about what this- they, actually were. Rachel was the only thing on his mind. Because she was his. If only for right now and with just a few days left, she was his. And that afternoon, in her white four-post bed, with the sun shining through her windows and laying an orange gleam on everything, he made love to her. Just like he had two years ago in that little hotel room in New York City at their friend's wedding. He took his time, carrying her up the stairs, laying her down on her bed and peeling the clothes of her perfect body. He made sure to tell her how sexy and beautiful she was a dozen times, making her come twice before even pulling off his boxers. And when he finally slipped into her, they both moaned out loudly, never breaking eye contact. And again, he thought back to the night two years ago and for a split second, he wished that he would've done everything differently. That he wouldn't have let her leave this easily. But this wasn't about regretting the past, or even thinking about the future. It was about enjoying the here and now. And _god_, the here and now was amazing.

* * *

**And that's it for today!  
What did you think? And especially, did you like the whole love-making scene? I had my problems with writing it, since I didn't know how far to go and where to stop. So please give me some feedback on that!  
Next-Up: Puck visits his mom & Rachel's dads have some things to say! **


	13. Killers

**A/N: Thanks for all the follows, favorites & reviews! I still really appreciate it, more than you probably know. And I won't even write too much because I'm gonna go watch the World Cup Finale now (rooting for Germany to take that cup home) soooo: Enjoy!**

* * *

It was 4pm when Puck parked his jeep in the garage of his house. He had spent 6 hours with Rachel and he really should feel more guilty than he did. He just couldn't. Not when it had been so amazing, being with her like this again.

When he opened the door, it just took a few seconds until Quinn was standing in front of him.

Shit. He hadn't thought she'd be home by now.

"Where have you been?" She asked accusingly. He would've felt offended if she didn't have every right to be like that.

"Uh I drove around for a bit. Was getting boring to just sit here and do nothing." Puck lied easily. He hadn't talked to Rachel about what to do yet, so he decided to keep everything a secret for a bit longer. "What are you already doing here?" He asked to change to topic.

"Frannie and mom went to see the wedding planner to discuss some things. They didn't really need me there anymore so I decided to come home to... spend some time with you!" Quinn smiled, showing off her perfect teeth. Her older sister was getting married in 4 weeks - another event he didn't want to attend but had to - (or maybe he wouldn't, depended on what would happen the next few days). Anyway, her whole family was already freaking the fuck out. Puck didn't really get what was so special about it since Frannie and her boyfriend - wait, fiancée - already had a one year old son, so it wasn't like they'd break up anytime soon. But whatever. Quinn was excited, so he played along.

"Oh okay... well I wanted to drive to my mom to check on her and Becca, but-"

"Great, I'll just get dressed and then we can go!"

Well shit. He thought Quinn wouldn't want to see his mom since they still had their issues with each other (his mom was still was mad at Quinn for giving their baby away, even though she knew it had been for the best) and Becca never really liked Quinn in the first place (because she never wanted to play Barbie with her, but like, whatever).

But now it seemed like she actually wanted to spend time with him, even if that meant she had to endure the evil eyes from his mom and snarky comments from his sister, and it made him feel like a complete dick. Which he totally was, by the way. He knew that. It was just more obvious when Quinn wasn't acting like a total bitch. And yeah, maybe this made him an even bigger jerk, but when she was all bitchy and moody, bossing him around half of the time and ignoring him the other half, at least he had a reason for cheating on her. It gave him an excuse for the way he had acted lately. It explained his feelings for Rachel.

But he knew he was just being a hypocrite here.

Quinn didn't have anything to do with his feeling for Rachel. And she couldn't change anything now, no matter what she did.

* * *

"So, I met Leroy yesterday at Walmart and he told me Rachel is back in town for a while!" His mom said with _that_ gleam in her eyes. She fucking adored Rachel, always had since that week in sophomore year when they _kinda_ _dated_, and she didn't even try to hide it.

"Yes, she is! We already saw her. She came over for dinner a few days ago and we saw her coincidentally at the lake!" Quinn answered sweetly. She still tried to make his mom like her. Without any success.

"You didn't say anything, Noah!" His mom accused him. Puck just shrugged cause really, why would he have told her? To increase the chances of getting caught? His mother always had been suspicious of his true feelings for Rachel or what the fuck ever, so he didn't want to risk anything.

"I heard she is here with her boyfriend, some cardiologist she met in New York!" His mother said, looking at him searchingly. Fuck, that woman had some sort of sixth sense.

"_Was_." Puck mumbled, but everyone heard it anyway.

"What do you mean, Noah?" His mother asked curiously. He really had to be careful around her.

"Um I... I just meant that the guy flew back home. So she _was_ here with him, not... _is_." Puck said, trying his hardest to sound as casual as possible.

"How do you know that? We haven't seen them in a few days." Quinn asked frowning.

Oh fuck fuck fuck. Goddamnit. He wasn't supposed to know that! Rachel had told him that this morning, when he was _driving around town _aka having super hot sex with her and forgetting his own name for a few minutes. Shit.

"I uh... Rachel told me today." He said, shoving some of the Challah his mom made into his mouth.

"You saw her today?" Quinn asked in a tiny voice and he knew he was fucked if he didn't change the topic right this instant.

"Yeah I um-" He cleared his throat. "I stopped by when I was driving around." He saw his mom looking at him sceptically out of the corner of his eye, but if she suspected anything, she kept her mouth shut.

"So how is school going Becca? You didn't tell me how your last maths test went!"

His little (or not so little anymore) sister groaned as she tried to talk her way out of telling him her marks. Good that she wasn't nearly as great with changing the topic as he was.

(He'd have to thank his mom for his distracting skills later.)

* * *

Of course Quinn didn't drop the whole topic. She always had been jealous, especially when it came to Rachel since they had history and stuff. Puck thought she would have stopped with this whole Rachel-jealousy thing by now, but apparently, she didn't.

"So you saw Rachel today." She stated when they sat in the car on their way back home. It sounded more like an accusation than a simple statement.

"Yeah, just thought I'd drop by since I didn't have anything to do." Sure. He _just_ dropped by. And than he _just_ slept with her. No biggie.

"You didn't tell me." _Why didn't you tell me? What are you hiding from me? _

"It wasn't important." Puck said, keeping his eyes on the road. Quinn already suspected something, he didn't want to add more to it by showing her the guilty look on his face.

"Were you... were you alone with her?" She asked in a quiet voice. _Jesus fucking christ._

"Does that matter?" He laughed it off because he knew that yes, it did matter. If they hadn't been alone, he never would have kissed her. He never would have said all these things. And he definitely wouldn't have slept with her.

(He was still glad they had been alone.)

"No I just... sorry, forget I asked." Quinn said, shaking her head.

_Yeah, cause forgetting was so easy for him. _

* * *

"Hey Kitten! How are you?" LeRoy said when he stepped into the living room, putting his briefcase down. She was watching a rerun of Friends with her other dad, waiting until the casserole was finally done.

"I'm fine. How was your work?" She asked and kissed him on the cheek when leaned down.

"It was alright. A little stressful, but I had something to look forward to when I came home: my little princess!" Her dad said and kissed the top of her head before walking around the sofa to sit down next to her.

"Oh good to know that is the only thing you look forward to!" Hiram said, throwing his husband an offended look.

"You know that's not true, Hiram. It's just not very often that our baby girl comes home to visit us these days!" LeRoy smiled softly and nuzzled her neck, making her laugh.

"That's true." Hiram agreed. "We really didn't see much of you these last month!" Oh, of course they were blaming her now.

"You both know I'd love to see more of you!" Rachel rolled her eyes, sighing deeply.

"Starlet... are you still upset about Cedric leaving?" LeRoy asked worried.

They hadn't talked about it yet since Cedric had left this morning. _This morning. _He wasn't even gone for 24 hours and Rachel had already cheated on him. It was now that she realized he never called to say he had a safe flight and it made her feel a little bit better about everything. At least he didn't think about her any more than she did about him.

Yes, she knew that didn't excuse the things she had done since he was actually working and saving people's lives or something and she was just letting her feelings control her. But still. It meant something.

"I still think it was a little rude of him to leave so soon!" Hiram said, crossing his arms next to her.

"Hiram!" LeRoy exclaimed shocked, laying his hand protective on her back.

"What? He planned to spend two weeks with Rachel and left after one." Her papa argued.

"He's just a really busy man! I think it's admirable that he is so committed to his work!" LeRoy countered.

"Of course it is. And he is a nice young man. All I'm saying is that I found it to be rather rude that he left our Rachel alone when he promised her he'd stay for two weeks! It's just a matter of-"

"Hiram, this is not the right time nor the right place to discuss this!" Her dad hissed, shooting his fiancée a daring glare.

"It's alright daddy." Rachel finally interrupted. "I know papa just worries about me! But it's okay, really. I'm not mad." How could she when she had spend the whole day having sex with another guy.

"I'm sorry, baby girl. I just don't want you to get hurt!" Hiram took her hand in his, stroking his thumb over the back of her hand, while LeRoy took the other one.

"It's okay, really. I'm fine." She said, smiling at both of her dads before squeezing their hands emphatically.

In reality, she was anything but fine. There were so many things buzzing around her head and she didn't know how to deal with any of them. But, out of everything going on right now, Cedric leaving was the last thing upsetting her.

So she didn't want her dads worrying about her. Not because of that.

* * *

She could smell him everywhere.

On her clothes. On her sheets. Her pillow. Her whole room. Simply everywhere.

And it made her miss him even more.

Yes, she was slowly turning insane! Noah had left just 18 hours ago (not that she counted) and she already missed him like crazy. And not just him as in having really hot I-haven't-touched-you-in-two-years sex, but just... him. Noah. His smile, his voice, the way he made her laugh or even pissed her off just to make it up a few seconds later by kissing her or telling her stupid jokes that made her smile.

Rachel knew she was already way to deep into this.

You weren't supposed to fall for the guy you had an affair with. (Alright, she knew it was more than an affair, but you get the point.)

She still had a boyfriend.

God, _Cedric_.

In the last 24 hours she hadn't spent more than an hour thinking about him. And she should feel horrible about this. Should. As in she didn't. Not really.

And yeah, that probably made her a horrible girlfriend, but when she heard a truck pulling into her driveway, she couldn't stop her heart from beating faster and faster. Her dads were already at work and there was just one person who'd show up at her doorstep at 9:30 in the morning

She hurried down the stairs and opened the door before he could even ring.

"Noah." She smiled, trying to calm herself down. (Seriously, it was kinda embarrassing how excited she was.)

"Morning there, runner." Puck smirked, obviously amused by her.

"Um I... I heard your car in the driveway." Rachel blushed, pushing her curls over one shoulder. Yes, this time she actually had expected him to show up, so she put on a cute, short summer dress, curling just the tips of her hair. Exactly the way he liked it. (He had told her this many times.)

"Of course. You gonna let me in?" Puck grinned, poking her belly so she'd step aside.

"Oh yes, sorry. How rude of me!" Rachel apologized, but felt stupid right afterwards. Yeah, as if Noah Puckerman, out of all people, would care about her politeness.

"So I... I wasn't sure if you'd come over today." She said hesitantly.

"I would've called, but I don't have your number." Puck shrugged, taking of his shoes and laying his keys on the little cabinet in their corridor.

"Oh yeah, right..." She nodded, not knowing how to act around him now that he was here. When he had left the day before, he said he'd come back so they could talk. But how could she start this conversation they clearly needed to have?

"So, your dads home?" He asked when they stepped into the living room.

"No, they have to work. You know, this whole trip was kind of a last minute decision, so it was too late for them to take both weeks off. But they got some free days next week, so I'll stay a few days longer than originally planned."

"So you are telling me your dads won't be home until noon for the next 3 days?" Puck smirked, grabbing Rachel by her hips and pulling her towards him.

"Yes..." Rachel giggled softly, wrapping her hands around his neck. "That would be the result."

"Huh." He smiled, stroking his thumbs over her hip bones where her shirt had ridden up and left them bare. "I think I know a few things we could do with all that time." Slipping on hand under her shirt, Puck pressed Rachel again him. His fingers felt warm against her skin, but she couldn't help the shiver that ran through her when he took her lips with his. After teasing her mouth for a few seconds, he softly nuzzled his lips across her cheek to her earlobe, nibbling and sucking on it.

"Noah..." Rachel breathed as he kissed _that_ stop behind her ear and pulled his lips onto hers again. She gently sucked on his bottom lip, making him moan, as her fingers traced his strong jawline.

"Fuck, do that again..." Puck groaned against her lips. Rachel chuckled softly, grasping the back of his hair as she let out a deep breath. Everything with Noah always got so intense within just a few seconds. And even if she knew it was going to end this way sooner or later, they had to shift down a gear.

"Noah I... I think we..."

"We should take it slow. Got it." He stepped away, letting go of her completely. But to her surprise Rachel didn't see any anger or disappointment in his eyes when she looked at him. He just smiled at her for a few seconds before walking around the sofa and flopping down on it. "Wanna watch a movie? But no musical shit. Seriously, this is probably the only thing I didn't miss about hanging out with you!"

And it was as easy as that.

* * *

Her head way laying on his naked chest, his finger combing through her soft, brown curls. (He just really loved her hair.)

Of course they ended up like this. But really, who did have any doubt?

They had watched that movie with Katherine Heigl and Ashton Kutcher and it really wasn't all that bad. For one because Katherine Heigl? Totally hot. And there were guns and blood and dead people, so he was cool with it. The best part though was when Rachel straddled his lap at the end and started to kiss him. Yeah, that had totally been the highlight.

So.. where was he? Right, Rachel, naked, lying on his chest.

In other words: heaven.

And for a moment he let himself think about how normal this was. Them, watching a movie, joking around, having incredible hot sex and cuddling afterwards. And he kind of wished it was normal, that this was his daily life. But then he remembered that no, this was as far from normal as it could get. She had a boyfriend, he had a girlfriend and even if they could manage that part (cause really, it was just a matter of time right now), they still lived miles and miles apart. And in a few days she'd fly back and he wouldn't get to see her for a long time.

He sighed, kissing the top of her head.

"I think I should get going." Puck said, stroking his thumb over her soft cheek.

"Okay..." Rachel whispered, not making a move to get up. Puck chuckled against her hair, dropping a sloppy kiss to her lips.

"That means I have to get up." He laughed. With a growl Rachel sat up, combing her fingers through her hair and pulling the covers up her chest. (Seriously, he had seen her completely naked just 15 minutes ago. So what was her deal?)

"Don't look like that. You know I want to stay, I just-"

"You just can't. Yeah, I know." She answered, smiling sadly. "I just wish things were different." Rachel shrugged. Puck couldn't handle seeing her this upset, so he took her face into his large hands, pulling her in for a gentle kiss.

"Me too." He mumbled, leaning his forehead against hers. After a few seconds he pulled away, getting up to pull on his clothes. Rachel did the same, following him down the stairs when they were done.

"Hey, gimme your phone." Puck smiled, holding out his hand. He typed his number into her phone, sending himself a message so he had hers too. "Now I won't take you by surprise anymore."

Rachel smiled, taking the phone from him again. "Good. I mean, I could be dancing around the house naked and we wouldn't want that, right?" Rachel smirked as Puck's mouth dropped open.

"Fuck babe, you can't say stuff like that when I'm about to go..."

Rachel just giggled and pecked his lips softly. "I'm sorry, Noah." (He knew she wasn't.) "Now go!" She pointed towards the door with her head, taking his keys from the cabinet and letting them fall into the palm of his hand.

"I'll text you later, alright?" Puck said carefully. He knew Rachel was acting more happy than she actually was. He knew they still had to talk about a lot of stuff. And they would, they just needed to find the right moment or whatever it was.

"Okay." She smiled, leaning into him when he slung his arms around her.

"Bye, Rach." Puck whispered into her ear and kissed her cheek before opening the door and stepping outside.

It was only the second time he left her like this, but it already felt a lot harder than the first time.

* * *

**Liked it? Was there something you hated? Let me know.  
****Btw, this chapter is named after the movie Puck and Rachel watched, if you didn't already get that. Most chapters have some sort of reference to movies or songs or whatever. But some are just random lines of the chapters because I was too uncreative that day. Oh well...  
Next-Up: Cake & Cookies. That's all I'm gonna say. **


	14. Looking In Your Big Brown Eyes

**A/N: I know this took me forever and I'm so sorry! I don't even have an excuse, really... I was just fucking lazy and didn't feel like writing. And then I wrote the whole chapter just to decide that it sucked afterwards, so I had to start ****all over **again. But I promise I won't just stop writing and leave this story unfinished, so even if I don't update for 2 weeks it's not because I'm done, but simply because I'm a lazy sloth. So yeah, here's the next chapter. Enjoy!  


* * *

Just when Rachel was slipping under her covers, ready to go to sleep, her phone beeped, signaling a new text. She smiled when she saw his name on the display.

_NP: U rly dance around your house naked?_

Of course he was still thinking about this. He was such a boy. (Maybe she even liked him a little bit more for that.)

_RB: Maybe I'm doing it right now._

She sent back, not bothering to lay the phone down cause she knew he'd answer within a few seconds.

_NP: Jeez u can't say stuff like that. Fucking tease._

Rachel had to giggle. She didn't mean to be a tease (most of the time), but it was just too easy with Noah. And she knew he secretly loved it.

_RB: Now you know that's not true Noah. Most of the time you are the one teasing me._

_NP: Fuck yeah, I am. Wish u were here right now babe. Miss ya._

She wondered what he was doing at this moment, but didn't dare to ask. If he was lying in bed next to a sleeping Quinn, she really didn't want to know.

_RB: It's really not that hard to actually spell words out. Especially not when said words contain just three letters._

She sent, before writing another text.

_RB: But I miss you too._

Cause she did. She missed him way too much.

Just two hours ago she had talked to Cedric over the phone. It lasted about 5 minutes, he just said sorry for not calling her sooner and that the surgery went well and his patient was probably going to be alright. He also apologized again, for leaving her so soon, but this time when she answered that _It was okay_ and _He shouldn't worry, she was fine_, Rachel knew it wasn't a lie anymore. When he had left she had been mad at him, angry even, and it definitely hadn't been _okay_. But now she had spent so much time with Noah and even though that made her a horrible person, she knew that the time with Cedric wouldn't have been as great as the hours with Noah.

So it was okay. He wasn't the one who should be apologizing. It was her who cheated, or... was cheating on him. And yes, Rachel felt bad about lying to him, but she didn't want to do this over the phone. Breaking up over a text or phone call was just about the cheapest thing she could imagine and he really didn't deserve that. No one did. So she didn't tell him about Noah, just said she spent most of her time reading and sleeping when he asked and returning his _I__ love you_ at the end of the call. Because she did. She still loved him. She just wasn't _in love_ with him anymore. And she would tell him that as soon as she was back in New York, no matter what happened with Noah until then.

* * *

"Morning." Puck said as he stepped into the kitchen. Quinn was always up sooner than him, but in the last few weeks she didn't even bother to wake him up anymore. He wasn't so sad about that, to be honest.

"Good Morning, Puck!" The blonde smiled shortly before continuing to spreading the cream cheese on her bagel.

"Are you going somewhere?" He asked, taking a cup and filling the rest of the coffee Quinn hadn't drank in.

"We'll test some cakes for the wedding today. My mom should be here in about 5 minutes to pick me up."

He was such a lucky bastard.

"Oh cool. And... when are you going to be home?" He asked casually.

"Well, after the tasting we'll go back to the little wedding dress boutique to pick up the dress, so it could get a little late." Quinn set her bagel down and stepped towards him. "I'm sorry I was so busy these last few days. But I promise you that after the wedding, I'll take some time off again. Maybe we can go on a little holiday together. Just the two of us." She wrapped her arms around his neck which left him no choice but to put his hand on her hips. It felt weird to be this close to her. He really couldn't remember the last time they stood in front of each other like this, talking and really _looking_ at each other.

"It's alright. I know how excited you're about the wedding." He said, shrugging it off. He wasn't mad at her for being away so often, it was quite the opposite.

"No it's not, but I'm glad you're not angry." She pecked his lips and pulled away to look into his eyes. "What do you think about Europe?"

"Huh?" Puck asked confused.

"For our holiday. We could fly to Spain or Italy, spend some time in Germany or go to Paris! I always wanted to see the Eiffel tower." She looked at him with those beaming eyes and for one second, he thought that maybe this wasn't bad idea. Maybe they really could manage this, overcome all of their problems and fall for each other again. But then she kissed him, really kissed him and not just pecking his lips, and he knew that he couldn't do this.

Puck didn't feel anything. No butterflies, or fire, no passion, or anything else. The kiss wasn't bad, it just didn't mean anything to him.

He smiled and let out a sound that could either mean yes or no when he pulled away. To his benefit, the doorbell rang and he didn't have to answer anymore. He ran his hand through his hair before leaning against the cupboard behind him. He really had to do something about this. They couldn't continue living like this and he was sure Quinn felt it too. Nothing was like it used to be and they both knew it.

About 3 minutes after Quinn had left, Puck pulled out his phone and typed a new message.

_NP: R u home?_

It took her about 30 seconds before she answered.

_RB: Yes, I am. Just got back from Walmart. :)_

(Even though she always sounded so formal when she texted him, her weird emoticons were kinda cute. Don't tell anyone.)

_NP: Gr8. Be there in 10._

* * *

Just as Rachel had put away all the groceries and other things she bought (a woman could never have enough hair ties and clips!), the doorbell rang, announcing a visiter. She knew it was him since he had invited himself over just 10 minutes ago through a text message. And she didn't even think it was rude, rather... sweet. (Yep, something was seriously wrong with her.)

"Hey babe." Noah grinned when she opened the door. He wore a light blue shirt and simple, dark shorts. It wasn't fair how good he looked when he clearly didn't put much effort in his appearance.

"Noah, hi! Come in." Rachel smiled, stepping inside so he would follow her.

"What are you doing?" Puck asked as he closed the door behind him, kicking off his shoes and placing them _neatly_ on the foot mat. (Yes, she had lectured him the last time he just threw them into the corner. He definitely wouldn't do that again.)

"I was actually getting ready to bake something. There is a bake sale at temple tomorrow and since my dads aren't really good with this kind of thing, I thought I'd bake something on my own." She shrugged, leaning again the sofa.

"Huh. And what are you planning to bake?" Puck asked.

"Lemon meringue pie..." She answered quietly, biting her lip.

"That's my favorite!" Puck said, his eyes getting bigger as his smile grew wider. (Boys and cake. It was really that simple.)

"I know." Rachel answered softly. "I-I mean, that's not why I choose to make it, but... I just... I thought people would..." Rachel stuttered, trying to talk herself out of it. Without any success. Puck had _this_ smirk on his face and stepped closer to her, pulling her to him by her hips.

"Admit it, you totally thought about me while choosing it." Puck raised his eyebrows, already knowing he was right.

"I... it helped by my decision, yes." Rachel blushed, playing with the collar of his shirt. (Sometimes she hated how obvious she was.)

"Sweet." Puck laughed, nudging her head with his so she'd look at him again. "Nothing to be embarrassed about. I mean, I totally get that you can't stop thinking about me, I'm pretty awesome like that." He said cocky. Rachel laughed, shoving at his chest playfully.

(But really, she was such a lush. He didn't even move a centimeter.)

"Are women really into this narcissistic act?" Rachel shook her head, stepping away from him so she could move towards the kitchen.

"That's not an act, babe. I am a stud. Fact." Puck answered, following her.

"Uh huh. Keep telling that yourself." She laughed, leaning against the kitchen door frame. He looked at her for a second before smirking.

"You're really doubting me? Well then... I think _someone_ needs a legit prove here!"

(They didn't start baking for two hours.)

* * *

"So, what do you actually need for this pie?" He asked when they finally were ready to bake after two hours and several rounds of him proving that he in fact was a stud. (She didn't deny it any longer.)

"Let me see..." Rachel took a piece of paper and leaned against the kitchen unit. "We need white sugar, flour, butter, eggs, salt, water, cornstarch and of course lemons!"

"That's it?" He asked, taking the recipe out of her hands to check. Seriously, if he had known it was that easy he could have made one himself. (He wouldn't but he could have.) Quinn wasn't really into cake and pie, so if she baked than it were cupcakes, which, hey, he had no complains about. He just really liked pies and sometimes a guy wasn't satisfied with that cupcake shit of hers. Sue him.

"Yes, Noah, it is in fact that easy. So go and wash your hands so we can get started!" Rachel ordered, making him roll his eyes. Why did every woman in his life always try to tell him what to do? He wasn't a little boy anymore, he had a job, a house, he was a fucking grown up. No one needed to tell him shit about what to do, especially since - most of the time - he just didn't listen on principle. Except when it came to Rachel, then he didn't actually mind. (He wasn't going to question that.)

"Yes mom..." He groaned, letting her see his smile so she knew he was joking, before following her order to wash his hands. He knew from experience that following her orders? Often to his benefit.

* * *

He was staring at her. And it was driving her crazy!

They had finished the pie and put in into the oven, then did the dishes and now he was standing next to the fridge, watching her put all the cleaned bowls and cutlery away. Normally she liked the attention, especially if it came from a man _that_ attractive, but right now it was just stressing her out. "What?" She laughed, closing the last cupboard and looking at him expectantly.

"Nothing." Noah shrugged, still smiling.

"No, tell me! Do I have flour on my face? Sometimes when I bake I just-"

He stepped towards her and grabbed her hands to stop her from trying to wipe something off her face that didn't even exist.

"There's nothing on your face, Rach." He laughed, shaking his head. "You're just..."

"What?" She asked softly, looking into his hazel eyes.

"You're _gorgeous_."

It were moments like this that made her heart flutter. Sure, he told her she was beautiful and sexy all the time, but that happened more than often when she was already half-naked or he was inside her. Or he used it just as a form of greeting. ( "Hey gorgeous." "Hi babe, you look great." "You look great in that dress. I think it would look even better on the floor next to your bed.") Now though, she was covered in a thin layer of sweat, wearing simple, dark red cotton shorts and a white baggy shirt that didn't flatter her figure at all. He hair was in a messy bun and she still smelled like raw cake dough. The fact that he looked at her like this and told her she was gorgeous? Totally made her knees go weak.

"I... I'm all sticky and my hair smells like dough and lemon." She laughed, not being able to break the eye contact. Something about this felt so intense, she couldn't explain it.

"Don't care." Puck answered softly, taking her face into his large hands. "You always look gorgeous."

And that was really all it took for her to press herself against him and pull him into a deep kiss. It wasn't just the compliment, she loved getting those, but there was more to it. It was the way he looked at her, like he meant so much more than he could say. It felt familiar and still totally new. And she could get lost in his kisses, the way the brushed his lips against hers and made her feel completely boneless. When her lungs felt like they would burst any second, she broke away, leaning her forehead against his.

"Noah?" She asked hesitantly.

"Mhh?" He smiled, still stroking his thumb over her cheek.

"Can I ask you something?"

"Go for it."

"Would you... do you want to come to the bake sale tomorrow?" He pulled away a bit so he could look into her eyes.

"Babe, it's a bake sale at temple. There are gonna be old, chatty woman gossiping about anything and everything just so they're less bored. And if I show up, I'm gonna be their topic number one." Puck huffed. Having a past like he did wasn't always easy. Especially when you were jewish and lived in a small town like Lima Ohio where you could only escape the accusing glances and whispering by moving into another state.

"I know, I know, but... I'll be there too." She smiled, looking at him from under her lashes.

"Yeah, and I won't be able to look at you cause then I wanna touch you and if I touch you I'll probably have to take you against the nearest flat surface and Rabbi Greenberg isn't going to be thrilled about that. Nor will be your dads. Or, god forbid, my mom! I mean, she'd be ecstatic that it was you, but having sex in the middle of a sacred place-"

"Alright, I got it. That was a stupid idea. I guess I just... I don't know, I wanna do something else than just sit around my house and do nothing."

"You consider really hot, hour-long sex as nothing?" Puck smirked, making Rachel giggle.

"You know what I mean!" She laughed and crossed her arms.

"Hey... if you wanna do something else we could, I dunno, drive somewhere... There is this weird summer festival right now, with bands and stupid stalls were you can win plush unicorns and shit. Chris told me he was there with Jess and it's just an hour away, so if you want to... I mean I could pick you up at 10 tomorrow and I dunno, we can just see for ourselves how much it really sucks..." Puck shrugged, looking to the ground. He was being incredible cute right now and Rachel couldn't help herself but tell him exactly that.

"That's really sweet, Noah." She said, taking his face into her hands and giving his lips a soft peck.

"It's... whatever. I mean, if you wanna go somewhere then we'll... do that. I guess." He tried to down play everything. Driving an hour to some stupid festival for a girl that wasn't even his girlfriend? Totally not badass. But Rachel knew it meant something. Much more than he let on.

"I would love to drive to that festival with you, Noah." Rachel smiled, crossing her hands around his neck.

"Yeah?" He asked sheepish.

"_Yes_." She answered and kissed him again. Noah slipped his hand into her long hair, moving his thumb back and forth behind her ear just like he knew made her crazy. When he pulled away, he swiped his thumb just under her bottom lip.

"Cool." He said, staring into her deep, brown eyes.

"Cool..." Rachel breathed, laughing softly when he did.

"Then I'll pick you up at 10."

* * *

**Please tell me that chapter didn't totally suck. **  
**I just don't know, this story transformed into something completely different from what I had originally planned and I'm not sure if I like it or not. **  
**So, like always, it would be great if you gave me some feedback.  
And until next time, where we'll make a little excursion to the fairground! **


End file.
